TOKYO, April 28 (Xinhua) -- Japan Airlines Co., Ltd. announced Friday its group net profit had fallen 5.9 percent in the business year ending March 31, owing in part to lower surcharges and a firmer yen.
JAL said its group net profit had retreated 5.9 percent from a year earlier to 164.17 billion yen (1.47 billion U.S. dollars).
Japan's second-largest carrier also said that its company's operating profit had dropped 18.6 percent to 170.33 billion yen, on sales of 1.29 trillion yen, which is a decline of 3.6 percent, compared to a year earlier.
Its international flights saw patronage drop 0.8 percent on year to 8.4 million passengers, JAL said, and it said its revenue from international passengers had dropped due to lower surcharges and a firmer yen.
Domestic passenger revenue, meanwhile, retreat 0.5 percent to 498.63 billion yen, JAL said, in part due to powerful earthquakes that hit Kumamoto Prefecture in April last year negatively impacting demand for domestic flights.
Looking ahead, JAL said it expects a consolidated net profit of 100 billion yen, dropping 39.1 percent, and an operating profit of 142 billion yen, down 16.6 percent.
The Japanese carrier also said that sales are projected to increase to 1.34 trillion yen, an increase of 3.9 percent.
