Budget carrier Air Arabia, the United Arab Emirates' only publicly listed airline, reported a 10 percent fall in first-quarter net profit on Sunday as its passenger yield dropped. The Sharjah-based airline made a net profit of 103 million dirhams ($28 million) in January to March, the company said in a statement. That was down from a profit of 114 million dirhams in the corresponding period of 2015.
EFG Hermes and SICO Bahrain had forecast first-quarter profit of 106.97 million dirhams and 47.97 million dirhams respectively. Air Arabia said its revenue fell 14 percent in the first quarter to 810 million dirhams, and it carried 2.1 million passengers, the same number as in the year ago period.