/ Source: Financial Times
Carnival, the world's largest cruise operator, reported a 2 percent drop in second quarter profits on Friday due to rising fuel costs.
Net income for the company dropped by $8m to $380m, or $0.46 per share, from $388m in the year ago quarter, but marginally beat average analysts estimates, according to Thomson Financial, of 0.45 a share.
Revenues grew by 5.8% to $2.66bn, because of an increase in capacity and increased revenue yields, the company said.
Fuel costs reduced earnings by $74m, or 9 cents a share from 2005.
The operator of the the princess, Holland America and Cunard cruise brands said its forecast stayed at $2.65-$2.75 a share for the year, after earnings downgrades in March and May.