AirAsia posts record quarterly loss as pandemic devastation continues

Malaysian long-haul budget airline AirAsia X Bhd reported a record loss for the first three months of the year and its eighth quarterly loss in a row as the coronavirus pandemic devastated demand for air travel.

The airline, an affiliate of AirAsia Group Bhd, on Thursday reported a net loss of 5.67 billion ringgit ($1.37 billion) in January-March, more than 10 times the loss of 549.7 million ringgit seen in the same period last year.

The loss was primarily attributable to the impairment of assets, it said in a statement.

Revenue for the quarter fell 11.2% to 38.5 million ringgit.

AirAsia said it has assessed the recoverability of its assets in light of the Covid-19 pandemic and its restructuring process, and impaired those assets by 5.28 billion ringgit.