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Summary Korean Air said Thursday it swung to loss in the first quarter due to soaring jet fuel prices.
Net loss came to 67.2 billion won (US$59.4 million) in the January-March period, compared with a profit of 270.9 billion won a year ago, the company said in a regulatory filing.Sales rose 6.3 percent to 2.9 trillion won during the three-month period, while operating losses topped 98.9 billion won vis-a-vis 162.9 billion won in the black.Korean Air said the net loss was attributable to an increase in jet fuel prices. A rise in the number of aircraft in its fleet raised depreciation expenses that hurt both net earnings and operating profits, it added.Shares of Korean Air ended at 45,700 won on the Seoul bourse, up 0.22 percent from the previous session.
