The American airline Delta Air Lines reports its first quarterly loss in five years.
Revenue fell 18 percent in the first quarter that ended in March, but that's likely just the beginning of the problems, the report said. Delta is forecasting a 90 percent revenue decline in the second quarter, but the work to secure operations in U.S. airspace continues, according to CEO Ed Bastian.
”"We are in the midst of a completely incomparable time, both for ourselves and for the aviation industry," he says in a comment.
The quarter ended with a net loss of $534 million, compared to a profit of $730 million in the same quarter last year. The adjusted loss was -$0.51 per share. This compares to the first quarter of 2019, when the profit was $0.96 per share.
Delta has raised $5.4 billion since the end of March, up from $6 billion in cash and cash equivalents. The airline also said it is in compliance with requirements to borrow $4.6 billion from the government.
The stock rose 1.7 percent in US pre-market trading shortly after the report was released.
Source: Direct News Agency
