The German airline Lufthansa has lifted its 2002 financial projections after beating its nine-month targets but the company has warned of difficulties in the fourth quarter.
The airline is now counting on annual operating profit, excluding special items, of between €700m and €750m and net profits of €600m to €650m, company chairman Juergen Weber told a press conference.
Weber also said Lufthansa had not ruled out giving financial support to the troubled US carrier United Airlines, its partner in the Star Alliance.
Lufthansa had forecast operating earnings of around €500m for the first nine months of 2002, a figure it easily eclipsed. The company reported operating profit in the period of €790m, a surge of 172% from the same period in 2001.
The carrier's results to date also surpassed analyst expectations and were attributed to reductions in capacity and spending carried out following the September 11 attacks in the US.
But Weber warned that 'it cannot continue like that' in the fourth quarter, notably in light of weak global economic momentum, political uncertainties linked to prospects in Iraq and a decline in business travel.
The company meanwhile reported net profit of €344m in the first nine months of the year, a gain of 23% on the same period in 2001.
