Thai Airways International reported an operating profit before finance costs of B10.18 billion ($315 million) for the quarter ended 30 June, up 72% year on year, primarily due to a decrease in fuel and aircraft maintenance costs. The carrier generated revenue of Bt44.8 billion, up just 1.9% from a year ago, as operating expenses fell 9% to Bt34.6 billion. Meanwhile, its net profit came in at Bt12.13 billion, compared with Bt314 million a year ago, largely due to gains made on aircraft lease terminations that amounted to B4.98 billion. In the first six months of the year, the carrier agreed to purchase four Boeing 777-300ERs that was previously on operating leases. The purchase, the carrier adds, also contributed to a decrease in maintenance costs. During the quarter, Thai carried 3.97 million passengers, up 4.2%, as it saw yields fall 13.4%, on the back on increased competition, it states. ASKs were up 9.7%, while RPKs were up 15.6%, as its load factor gained 3.8 percentage points to 77%. For the first six months of the year, the carrier posted an operating profit of Bt24.6 billion, up 45% year on year. During the period, it generated a revenue of Bt96.4 billion, up 7.2%, as operating expenses fell 1.5% to Bt71.9 billion. For the first half of the year, its net profit surged to Bt22 billion, compared with B2.72 billion a year ago. Thai had 78 operational and two unused aircraft in its fleet as of the end of the quarter, with 11 of the aircraft owned by the company, while the remaining are under lease agreements. It is expecting the deliveries of its new Airbus A321neos to start from the end of this year. The carrier has 32 of the type on order, delivering through 2028, all of which will be on operating leases, Cirium fleets data shows. The carrier also has 51 787s on order, with delivery scheduled between 2026 and 2033. As of 30 June, Thai's cash and cash equivalents stood at B120 billion, up 4.4% compared with the end of last year. For the rest of the year, the carrier notes that the Thai economy faces "increased uncertainty" as a results of trade negotiations with the US, while potential conflict could lead to higher fuel costs. At the same time, it notes that Thai international arrivals have been declining on the back of lacklustre Chinese arrivals. It adds, however, that the country's tourism agency is hoping to shore up safety confidence with Chinese travellers as it looks to pivot to other regions such as South Asia, Southeast Asia and Europe.

Lufthansa has become the latest major European airline group to withdraw from takeover negotiations with Air Europa. The German group says that after "thorough analyses and intense negotiations, we have at this stage decided against further engaging in a capital contribution and shareholding in Air Europa". This follows a Reuters report that Air France-KLM's discussions with Air Europa had broken down, and appears to leave only Turkish Airlines still in takeover talks with the Spanish carrier. IAG had previously sought to take a majority stake but pulled back last year, citing regulators' competition concerns. It retains a 20% holding. The remainder is held by the family-owned Globalia.

Turkish Airlines is readying a binding offer for Spanish carrier Air Europa as it seeks control of its connections between Europe and Latin America. Speaking to investors as part of its second quarter results, Mehmet Fatih Korkmaz, Turkish Airlines' head of investor relations, revealed that it had already made a non-binding offer with talks continuing. "We are still very interested, we are preparing a binding offer very soon," he explained, referencing the need for any decision to be approved by shareholders. "We have not come to that stage yet. As soon as we have the board decision, we will provide it publicly." Turkish Airlines’ ambition to purchase Air Europa follows a failed bid by IAG, which pulled out of the process a year ago citing tough regulatory conditions. It continues to hold a 20% stake in the company, with the remainder controlled by family-owned Globalia. Meanwhile, Air France-KLM said last month that it was no longer in talks with Air Europa following its own interest in a bid, and on 6 August Lufthansa Group said that following "thorough analyses and intense negotiations" it had decided against making an offer for the airline "at this stage". Korkmaz explained that any bid for Air Europa would be in line with the carrier’s long-term strategic goal of generating value through "reasonable investment opportunities" that bring synergies. "Increasing collaboration through share purchases, codeshares, airline join-ventures are all serving the same purpose, to create value for Turkish Airlines," he says. He specifically cites Air Europa’s "very strong presence" between Europe and Latin America, in both passenger and cargo markets, plus collaborating in MRO, technology, seat production and loyalty programmes, adding that Turkish Airlines is "actively enquiring in finding partners where we can find our synergies".