Ryanair warns of £47m loss

Budget airline Ryanair has warned it could lose as much as £47.4m this year if oil prices stay high. The company's net profits in the three months to the end of June this year fell by 85 per cent - a worse slump than analysts had predicted.

Chief executive Michael O'Leary said: "The outlook for the remainder of the fiscal year, which is entirely dependent on fares and fuel prices, remains poor.

"Yields fell by 8 per cent, as we opened new routes and base and suffered the absence of Easter in the quarter which distorts the prior year comparables."

He said the company wouldmaintain "aggressive pricing"to keep passenger numbers high, and would avoid implementingfuel surcharges.