Lufthansa says higher earnings will provide ‘buffer’ if demand falls

Lufthansa stuck to its forecast for higher earnings this year as a strong start to 2016 will help the German carrier to offset a series of headwinds to travel demand.

"The guidance remains what it is," chief executive Carsten Spohr said yesterday. "We have a little bit of a buffer from the first months of the year, when performance was better than planned."

Lufthansa forecast that adjusted earnings before interest and taxes this year will be “slightly higher” than 2015’s €1.82 billion. Analysts have lowered their expectations for the company in recent weeks and are now predicting adjusted Ebit to fall to €1.77 billion.

In addition to tourists wary after recent terror attacks, the UK’s vote to leave the European Union has raised concerns about recession hitting travel demand. – (Bloomberg)