Anchor: The mounting economic impact from the coronavirus pandemic is manifesting itself once again as South Korean air carriers report significant drops in operating earnings in the first quarter. The latest only adds to losses already suffered from a sharp decline in demand triggered by regional trade and diplomatic conflicts, and will likely only slow efforts for a swift recovery as the new virus continues to spread. 
Moon Gwang-lip has more.  

Report: Korean Air has posted its first deficit in operating earnings in three quarters amid growing fallout from the COVID-19 outbreak. 

In a regulatory filing on Friday, South Korea's largest airline and flag carrier said it swung to an operating loss of 56-point-six billion won in the January to March period from a profit of 238-point-four billion won a year earlier. 

The company's revenues also plummeted by around 23 percent on-year to two-point-35 trillion won, while its net loss widened from 89-point-four billion won to 692 billion won. 

This came after it managed to become the only domestic airline to post profits last year, despite significant declines in demand triggered by a nationwide boycott against Japanese products and services following Tokyo’s trade restrictions on Seoul, and the U.S.-China trade war. 

However, the results were less grim than what analysts forecast, due in part to Korean Air's emergency management measures, including furloughs for 70 percent of its employees. Its surprise growth in cargo transportation by over three percent and the collapse of oil prices brought on by the outbreak were also attributed to the better-than-expected performance. 

Asiana Airlines, the nation's second largest air carrier, also recorded a widening operating loss in the first quarter at 208-point-two billion won. The company saw a decline in revenues by 21-point-five percent to one-point-13 trillion won and posted a net loss of 549 billion won. 

Low-cost carriers have been hit hard by the outbreak. Jin Air swung to an operating loss of 31-point-three billion won, while its revenues halved on-year to 144 billion won. 

T’way Air, which posted 19-point-two billion won in operating losses for all of 2019 despite record high revenues, only saw more gloomy results in the first quarter with an operating loss of 22-point-three billion won. 

The outlook for the second quarter is not promising either. Korean Air and Asiana Airlines earlier announced a plan to resume some of their international flight services, including routes to the United States. But a recent resurgence in coronavirus cases in countries that experienced early success with quarantine measures such as China and Germany are raising uncertainties surrounding the speed of economic recovery and demand.

Budget airlines are also bracing for more troubling scenarios as a growing outbreak of cases linked to clubs in Seoul’s Itaewon area may make it difficult to resume domestic flights anytime soon.

As the impact of lockdowns and travel bans are expected to be felt for the months to come, some analysts warn it could even take years before the demand for flights returns to pre-crisis levels. 

A call for more government assistance in slashing costs for airlines may also ensue, following a 40 trillion won emergency aid package announced last month to be divvied up among the country’s seven backbone industries. 
Moon Gwang-lip, KBS World Radio News.