Korean Air’s quarterly profit defies coronavirus travel slump

Cargo sales climbed 95% from a year earlier to 1.23 trillion won, helping offset a 90% slump on the passenger side to 203.9 billion won.

SEOUL: Korean Air Lines Co reported a profit in the second quarter as its strong cargo operations offset a coronavirus-led slump in air travel that triggered massive losses for the global aviation industry.

The parent of Asia’s second-biggest cargo airline said its operating profit in the three months through June was 148.5 billion won (US$125mil), compared with a 101.5 billion-won loss in the same period last year, when it was hobbled by high fuel prices.