China Eastern Airlines 2000 net profit boosted by extraordinary gain

SHANGHAI (AFX-ASIA) - China Eastern Airlines Co Ltd made an extraordinary  gain of 246.71 mln yuan in its 2000 results under Chinese accounting  standards, and would have reported a 2000 net loss of 226.6 mln yuan if not  for this gain, company spokesman Zhao Ye said.      The company earlier reported a 2000 net profit of 20.1 mln yuan,  according to Chinese accounting standards, down from 208.1 mln yuan in 1999.      The company's net profit according to international accounting standards  amounted to 175.529 mln yuan, up from 84.289 mln yuan in 1999.      Zhao said all the items which made up the extraordinary gain will also  have contributed to the company's income under the company's IAS results,  although the exact value of their contribution to the company's IAS earnings  may be slightly different.      The items include the sale of four McDonnell-Douglas aircraft, which  generated gains of 262.8 mln yuan, the leasing of two aircraft, and 1 mln  yuan in government subsidies, he said.      The company's sales in 2000 amounted to 11.8 bln yuan, up from 10.7 bln.      Zhao said high domestic fuel prices were the main cause of the company's  weak earnings performance this year, noting that domestic fuel prices in 2000  were 60 pct higher than in 1999.      The higher fuel price increased the company's operating costs by 600 mln  yuan during the year, he said.      Zhao said competition in the domestic airline industry remains fierce,  and the problem of surplus capacity remains unresolved.      Although domestic airlines were required to sign an undertaking last year  to adhere to the Civil Aviation Administration of China's air ticket revenue  sharing policy, this policy was not adhered to strictly, and companies  continued to offer discounts, he said, adding that this also eroded the  company's earnings last year.			

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