Iberia flies back into profit

Spanish flag carrier Iberia, which is due to merge with British Airways, flew into the black in the second quarter, posting net profits of 31 million euros on an upturn in demand, it said Friday.
That compares with a loss of 73 million euros (93 million dollars) in the same period last year and ends six consecutive quarters of losses, the company said in a statement.
The airline has been badly hit by the global economic crisis which savaged the travel industry from late 2008.
Iberia said the closing of European airspace after the eruption in April of the Icelandic volcano Eyjafjoell cost it some 20 million euros in lost revenues.
Earnings growth in the second quarter was 10.2 percent sequentially.
For the six months to June, sales rose 2.8 percent to 2.27 billion euros but the company still reported a loss of 20.9 million euros, albeit an improvement of 87.4 percent over the same period of 2009.