Australia's Regional Express has revised its interim profit guidance for the current financial year (FY) ending 30 June. The operator is expecting a full-year statutory loss before tax of about A$15 million ($12 million), it says in a statement today. “The latest Covid-related state border restrictions and lockdowns have severely disrupted Rex’s domestic and regional networks, forcing Rex to cancel a large number of flights to/from Melbourne.” In an interim guidance dated 10 May, Rex said it expected to break even by the end of FY2021.

China Southern Airlines has received a three-year, CNY1 billion ($156 million) entrusted loan from its parent company.
The funds bear 3.85% interest, reflective of China's loan prime rate, and may be redeemed early, in part or in full, China Southern Airlines says in a Shanghai Stock Exchange disclosure dated 4 June. The loan is extended by China Southern Airlines Group Finance Company, a subsidiary of China Southern Air Holding, and requires no guarantee. The airline states: "The funds will support the [airline's] efforts to develop a Beijing Daxing [International airport] hub, help to diversify the company's funding sources, and increase its overall competitiveness." The loan has been disclosed as a related transaction. China Southern Airlines Group Finance Company currently has no outstanding loans to China Southern Airlines.

African carriers lost $10.2 billion in passenger revenues last year as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, and will continue to lose money in 2021, according to a report published by airline association AFRAA. The association estimates that carriers in Africa will lose another $8.35 billion in passenger revenues this year. While the crisis has had a "devastating impact" on airlines around the world, for African carriers – which were already in a "precarious" financial position – the impact has been "even greater", says AFRAA. The number of passengers carried by Africa's airlines is estimated to have dropped 63.7% to 34.7 million in 2020, compared with 2019. Domestic flights accounted for 43% of passengers in Africa last year, followed by intercontinental at 38%, and intra-African services at 19%, says AFRAA. Northern Africa was the leading region in terms of passenger numbers last year, accounting for 36.6% of the continent's traffic. The pandemic led to a 61% reduction in traffic from this region, says AFRAA. In southern Africa, traffic in 2020 fell 63.6%, compared with the previous year. Johannesburg and Cairo were the busiest airports in Africa during 2020, according to the report. Intra-African connectivity remains low, and AFRAA recommends that African airlines "take the opportunity" to expand these networks.