Asia's irrationally exuberant airlines chase away profits

Carriers harvest less than $5 per passenger as more competitors crowd in

20190227N AirAsia fuselage thm

AirAsia has built a network of budget airlines across much of Asia but has only been able to find reliable profits in Malaysia. (Photo by Keiichiro Asahara)

YOHEI MURAMATSU and AKIRA HAYAKAWA, Nikkei staff writers

BANGKOK/MUMBAI -- Fierce competition is decimating the bottom lines of Asia's airlines despite swelling passenger numbers.

Budget airlines have become especially popular among the region's enthusiastic middle-class travelers, but their proliferation has resulted in a profit margin of less than $5 per passenger, according to the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines.

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