Korean Air posted nearly 150 billion won in operating profit in the second quarter despite a plunge in travel demand amid worldwide COVID-19-induced lockdowns. 

In regulatory filing on Thursday, the largest South Korean airliner estimated its operating profit in the April to June period at 148-point-five billion won, a turnaround from the operating loss of 101-point-five billion won in the same quarter last year. 

Its net profit also swung to a surplus of 162-point-four billion won from a net loss of 380-point-78 billion won a year earlier while its sales declined 44 percent on-year to one-trillion-690-point-nine billion won. 

The surprise earnings were attributed to a sharp decrease in operating costs, which approximately halved to one-trillion-542-point-five billion won from three-trillion-121-point-six billion won a year ago. 

Efforts to save fuel costs and labor costs as well as the use of passenger jets for cargo transport were said to have contributed to the cost reductions. 

Cargo-related sales doubled from 629-point-nine billion won to one-trillion-225-point-nine billion won during the one-year period. The number of its passengers, however, plunged by 92-point-two percent on-year.