Half year profit falls at Air China

Profit at Air China fell by 76.7% for the first-half of the year to CNY945 million ($149 million). The fall was attributed to the slow economy, weak cargo demand and high fuel prices. Operating revenue was up by 3.82% to CNY47.33 billion with expenses rising by 7.6% to CNY44.75 billion. Fuel costs were up 9.6% to CNY17.81 billion during the period. Passenger numbers rose by 3.26% to 34.8 million people, with an average load factor of 80.04%. But cargo volume fell by 5.63% to 664,600 tonnes.