Air Arabia sees tough conditions into Q2 2010

Low-cost carrier Air Arabia, which reported its first drop in quarterly profit on Saturday, expects difficult market conditions to extend into the second quarter of next year, an official said on Monday. Air Arabia, the largest listed Arab airline by market value, saw third-quarter profit fall 9 percent, a decline it attributed to the global H1N1 flu virus pandemic and the fasting month of Ramadan. Profit fell 9 percent to Dh144 million ($39 million). "The market remains challenging," Paul Suckling, Air Arabia's director of finance and administration, told a conference call. "We perhaps are starting to see a little bit of improvement but generally, we think Q1 and maybe going into Q2 may still be depressed. It's going to remain as difficult as it has been."