Japanese airline ANA reports narrower Q1 operating loss

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That beat the 14.8 billion yen operating loss forecast by four analysts, Refinitiv Eikon data showed, and narrowed from a loss of 64.6 billion yen a year earlier.

Revenue rose 76.2% to 350.4 billion yen and the company stuck to its forecast of a 50 billion yen operating profit for the year to March 31, 2023.

Koji Shibata, president of ANA Holdings, said last month that the company was on track to meet its full-year profit target, with domestic passenger volumes for ANA and its low-cost carrier Peach Aviation now at about 90% of pre-pandemic levels.

Domestic flight demand, however, is at risk of weakening as COVID-19 cases surge due to the BA.5 variant, which pushed nationwide cases to a record 233,094 last week.

Japan began a gradual reopening to tourists in June after essentially being shut to non-residents for more than two years as part of pandemic-related measures.

Still, the government is limiting the number of entries to 20,000 people per day including returning residents – a fraction of pre-pandemic levels – and tourists can only visit on guided package tours.

($1 = 132.5700 yen)