The airline Air France-KLM issued a coronavirus-related warning that operating profit will be burdened by 150-200 million euros during the period February to April 2020. Another company affected by canceled China routes is Swedish SAS.

Air France shares were down more than 7 percent on the Paris Stock Exchange on Thursday morning, after the company described the aftereffects of the virus in its annual report as a fatal blow to its finances and demand prospects. Not only is the passenger side being weighed down, but also its cargo operations.

Lufthansa shares fell 3 percent and British Airways owner IAG shares were down 1.5 percent. Low-cost carriers, which are not exposed to China, were generally less affected. Ryanair and Norwegian Air fell by just under a percent, Wizz Air was down 0.6 percent and Easyjet fell 0.3 percent. 

At home in Stockholm, SAS shares were down 1 percent. The shares have fallen 35 percent since the beginning of December, when the communication at the interim report provided information about uncertain economic prospects and emerging slowdowns in major economies that are expected to negatively affect demand from SAS customers in the coming year. 

The company has subsequently announced that flight routes to Beijing and Shanghai will remain closed until March 29 due to the coronavirus.

According to an analysis from Sydbank last week, some of SAS's revenue loss could be offset by lower fuel costs and thus make up for the loss of profit later in the year. Given that 8-10 percent of the company's turnover comes from China flights, the two months of canceled flights could cost "hundreds of millions of kronor," according to the bank.

Source: Nyhetsbyrån Direkt