World airlines to make $2.5 bln next year - IATA

Geneva: International airlines are now expected to make a collective profit of $2.5 billion in 2007, up from $1.9 billion previously forecast thanks to lower fuel prices, the International Air Transport Association said on Tuesday.
IATA also now expects a reduced loss in 2006 of $500 million, down from the $1.7 billion previously forecast, helped by increasing efficiencies and steady growth in passenger numbers.
"We now see the industry as doing much better despite the oil shock which pushed up its costs ... This year the airline industry has almost reached break-even at the net post-tax level," Brian Pearce, IATA chief economist, told an annual news briefing.
The Geneva-based association, whose member airlines make up 94 percent of international scheduled air traffic, said its higher 2007 profit forecast reflected a drop in the price of jet fuel from a peak of $93 a barrel.
12/12/06 Robert Evans/Reuters

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