easyJet flags big loss
easyJet expects a pretax loss of £540–£560 million for the first half of fiscal 2026 as fuel costs bite. (euronews.com) The airline cited the higher kerosene bill even as Easter demand remained strong. (wingsmagazine.com)
easyJet said on April 16 that it expects a first-half pretax loss of £540 million to £560 million after a March jump in jet-fuel costs. (corporate.easyjet.com) The airline said the hit covers the six months ended March 31, 2026, and includes about £25 million of extra fuel expense in March alone. It also said higher legal provisions added roughly £30 million. (corporate.easyjet.com) That would be wider than the £394 million headline pretax loss easyJet reported for the same period a year earlier. The company said first-half demand still held up, with load factor at 90%, up two percentage points year over year. (corporate.easyjet.com) Fuel is one of the biggest variable costs for any airline, and easyJet said every $100 move in fuel prices changes second-half costs by about £40 million. The company said it is 70% hedged for the second half at $706 per metric ton, including the summer period. (aviationweek.com) The pressure came even as travelers kept booking seats and package holidays. easyJet said easyJet holidays customers rose 22% in the first half, and group revenue per seat increased by a low-single-digit percentage in the second quarter. (corporate.easyjet.com) The warning also showed how fast airline forecasts can change when fuel spikes late in a reporting period. Reuters reported that easyJet linked the higher fuel bill to the Middle East war, which pushed up kerosene prices and widened the expected loss range. (finance.yahoo.com) Investors reacted quickly after the update. CNBC reported that easyJet shares fell as much as 8.7% in early trading on April 16 before trimming some of the loss. (cnbc.com) easyJet said summer demand is still expected to be resilient, but bookings are coming in later than usual. Third-quarter capacity was 63% sold at the time of the update, versus 65% a year earlier, and the airline said forward visibility was lower than normal. (corporate.easyjet.com) The next test comes on May 21, when easyJet is scheduled to publish its full first-half results. By then, the question will be whether fares and holiday sales can keep offsetting a fuel bill that moved sharply in just one month. (corporate.easyjet.com)
