JAKARTA: Indonesia’s national flag carrier Garuda expects to end 2018 in profit and is targeting a net profit of 1 trillion rupiah (US$69.03mil) for 2019, its chief executive said on Friday. “Our net profit for 2018 is positive, even though it might be a small amount,” he said, attributing the result to cost-cutting, renegotiation of aircraft leases and new partnerships. The result would be a marked improvement for the airline, which reported a US$116.86mil net loss for the first six months of 2018. Askhara in September declared Garuda had abandoned hopes of making a profit this year, after struggling with fuel costs and a rising rupiah versus the US dollar. “Garuda might also see a partnership with (Malaysia’s) AirAsia ... through (Garuda unit) Citilink but it’s very early,” he said.

Source: The Star December 21, 2018 12:22 UTC