Ryanair has posted a first-quarter profit of €136.5 million, compared to a loss of €90.5 million for the same period a year earlier, on the back of a sharp fall in the cost of fuel.
The airline's fuel bill was down 42 per cent to €214 million over the quarter, the company said this morning.
Unit costs fell by 26 per cent due to lower fuel prices as a result in reductions in staff, airport and handling costs.
Total revenues for the quarter were flat at €774 million. Ancillary revenues rose by 13 per cent to €165.3 million.
The airline saw an 11 per cent rise in traffic to 16.6 million over the quarter, up from 15 million a year earlier.
In a statement, Ryanair said it had taken advantage of the recent drop in fuel prices to extend its hedging programme for fiscal 2010 to 90 per cent for the first three-quarters of the year at at an average price of $620 per tonne and 60 per centfor the fourth quarter at $610 per tonne.
"Our outlook remains cautious for the remainder of the fiscal year. Traffic growth is strong but at much weaker yields due to the recession and the impact of tourist tax in Ireland and the UK. We have limited visibility beyond the next two months but expect passengers to be very price sensitive for the rest of the year," chief executive Michael O'Leary said this morning.
Nonetheless, the company said it remains on track to deliver traffic growth of 15 per cent to 67 million passengers for the year with fuel and other cost savings being used to offset fare reductions.
The company said that based on current projections it expects full year net profit will be towards the lower end of the €200m to €300m range.
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