Asiana ups credit line amid virus woes

SEOUL, April 7 (Yonhap) -- Asiana Airlines Inc., South Korea's second-biggest airline, on Tuesday increased the limit on its credit line with two state lenders by 300 billion won (US$245 million) to refinance maturing debts and secure operating capital.

Asiana already took loans worth a combined 800 billion won from the two -- the Korea Development Bank (KDB) and the Export-Import Bank of Korea (Exim Bank).

In addition to the existing loans, Asiana has expanded the credit line by 300 billion won -- 215.2 billion won from the KDB and 84.8 billion won from Exim Bank -- to 1.1 trillion won, the company said in a regulatory filing.

Asiana is widely expected to suffer an earnings shock in the first quarter as it has suspended most flights on international routes as an increasing number of countries close their borders or impose stricter entry restrictions in their fight against COVID-19.

In its self-rescue measures unveiled last month, Asiana said it will have all of its 10,500 employees take unpaid leave for 15 days in April and executives return 60 percent of their wages.

Asiana entered an emergency management system in February and executives returned up to 40 percent of their salaries. In March, Asiana Chief Executive Han Chang-soo did not receive a penny and other executives returned 50 percent of their wages.

For the whole of 2019, Asiana's net losses widened to 672.6 billion won (US$565.3 million) from 96.2 billion won a year earlier, due mainly to a sharp decline in travel on Japanese routes.

Asiana's operating losses widened to 368.2 billion won in 2019 from 35 billion won a year earlier.

kyongae.choi@yna.co.kr
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