Lufthansa faces €2b jump in 2026 fuel bill as Iran war drives up costs

Releasing third quarter results, the group predicted its fuel bill across the full year will come in at €9.3 billion. — AFP pic

First Published: Tuesday, 03 Nov 2026 4:34 PM MYT

FRANKFURT, Nov 3 — German airline giant Lufthansa said Tuesday it expects its 2026 fuel costs to be €2 billion (RM9.12 billion) higher than last year as the Iran war keeps global energy prices elevated.

Releasing third quarter results, the group predicted its fuel bill across the full year will come in at €9.3 billion.

That is 600 million higher than it had anticipated just a few months ago, as the US war against Iran drags on.

The group, which also operates carriers including Swiss, Brussels and Eurowings, also slightly downgraded its forecast for core profit to a range of between €1.7 and €2.0 billion for 2026.

Previously it predicted a range of between €1.7 and €2.2 billion.

Despite the slightly bleaker outlook, the group reported a 30-per cent jump in profits for the July-September period, beating forecasts.

Net profit came in at €1.26 billion, with the company saying there had been strong demand for premium tickets to Asia and North America.

Revenues increased nine percent from a year earlier to €12.2 billion.

Fuel costs however were more than €500 million higher in the quarter compared to a year earlier.

“We improved our result compared with the previous year, despite higher fuel costs weighing on the quarterly result by more than half a billion euros — we are satisfied with that,” chief financial officer Till Streichert said.

“This was supported by robust demand in passenger traffic.” — AFP