JAL REPORTS FIRST HUGE LOSS SINCE 2012

Japan Airlines (JAL) reported on Friday a group net loss of ¥286.693 billion ($2.68 billion) for the year through March, its first annual red ink since its relisting on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in 2012, Jiji Press reported.

The company’s fiscal 2020 bottom line was hit by a plunge in travel demand due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, with foreign flights canceled as various countries imposed lockdowns due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

JAL also limited international flights to Asian destinations, particularly China, when the pandemic spread to neighboring countries and then on to Australia, New Zealand, and ASEAN member-states, and North America and Europe.

For the previous year, JAL logged a net profit of ¥48.057 billion ($442 million) but total revenues plummeted 65.3% to ¥481.225 billion ($4.43 billion).

WEEKLY FEATURE : TRUEMONEY PHILIPPINES BUCKS THE COVID-19 CHALLENGE