Korean Air's airplane is seen in this file photo. Courtesy of Korean Air

Korean Air, Korea's leading airline, said Friday it has swung to the black in the fourth quarter from a year earlier thanks to robust cargo demand.

Net profit for the October-December period came to 283.3 billion won ($196 million) on a nonconsolidated basis, compared with a net loss of 234.6 billion won a year ago, the company said in a statement.

Operating profit soared 159 percent on-year to 476.5 billion won in the October-December period, and sales edged up 1 percent to 4.03 trillion won.

It marked the third consecutive quarter the Korean air carrier posted revenue of more than 4 trillion won.

The company said its quarterly operating profit increased thanks to robust air cargo driven by the Chinese e-commerce market and year-end consumption spree.

In the fourth quarter, sales from the cargo business rose 9 percent on-year to 1.2 trillion won.

Sales from the passenger business, however, decreased 3 percent to 2.37 trillion won due to the seasonal off-peak period.

For the whole of 2024, Korean Air logged record sales of 16.1 trillion won, up 10.6 percent from the previous year.

The annual operating profit reached 1.9 trillion won, up 22.5 percent on-year, and net profit increased 36.8 percent to 1.25 trillion won.

The company attributed its strong yearly performance to robust cargo demand and increased air freight rates as well as higher passenger capacity for international flights.

Last year, Korean Air transported 17.7 million international travelers, up 26.5 percent from 2023, according to data from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

The volume of its international cargo transport gained 9.5 percent to 1.6 million tons over the same period.

Korean Air said it aims to strengthen its competitiveness as a global airline this year following its acquisition of local rival Asiana Airlines Inc. in December.

The company also said it will work to maximize profitability from the passenger business by responding to demand to China and other destinations, and diversify its portfolio for the cargo business by leveraging recent demand driven by the e-commerce market. (Yonhap)