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International airlines cut costs, post profits despite fuel prices.

Article Excerpt
While subject to many of the same challenges that dragged down their domestic counterparts, foreign-based carriers on the whole fared better than airlines in the United States last year. Anchored by relatively strong profitable performances in such regions as Asia/Pacific and Europe, airlines based outside of North America posted an aggregate annual profit of more than $4 billion last year, offsetting to some degree the more than $10 billion in losses among U.S.-based carriers and scaling down the amount of red ink that has documented the year, according to the International Air Transport Association.

"Globally, airlines lost $6 billion in 2005," IATA director general and CEO Giovanni Bisignani said. "U.S. carriers lost $10 billion. European carriers made about $1.3 billion. Asian carriers led profitability with $1.5 billion."

Although 2006 is expected to be another year in the red, IATA in its latest forecast said the latest estimates "show significantly reduced losses" for the year. The association expects airlines to lose a total of $2.2 billion then return to profitability in 2007, with an estimated $7.2 billion in profits.

"Stronger economic growth will keep oil prices higher for longer, and these are now expected to average $57 a barrel this year, but the beneficial impact...

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