Costlier jet fuel eats into Air-India`s profits

Mumbai: Rising fuel prices have taken their toll on Air-India’s bottomline in 2005-06. After recording a net profit of Rs 96.36 crore in 2004-05, the company has just managed to stay in the black in 2005-06, though total revenue during the period went up around 18 per cent to Rs 9,000 crore from Rs 7,630 crore.
Attributing the fall in profits to the increase in international fuel prices, Air-India Chairman and Managing Director Vasudevan Thulasidas told Business Standard: “Although the accounts for the year ended March 2006 were yet to be finalised, indications are that the company would manage to stay in the black.”
According to Thulasidas, the national carrier had to bear fuel cost of nearly Rs 3,000 crore in 2005-06 and one-third of this — Rs 1000 crore — could have been avoided had there been no rise in fuel prices.
25/05/06 Kausik Datta & P R Sanjai/Business Standard

To Read the News in full at Source, Click the Headline