Fresh half brings change of fortune at carrier

Air China, the mainland's unlisted carrier, made 261.07 million yuan (about HK$243.6 million) in profit over the past two months, producing a turnaround from a 600 million yuan loss in the first half.

The bulk of the profit, 160.24 million yuan, came last month, with 100.83 million yuan in July.

Revenue last month from core operations rose 7.3 per cent year on year, to 1.46 billion yuan, the airline's Web site reported.

Analysts believe that Air China has been losing money for years, but that it may spin off profitable units.

Air China is one of the 10 carriers directly administered by industry watchdog, the Civil Aviation Administration of China.

Together these carriers lost about two billion yuan in the first half.