SpiceJet builds on recovery with small profit in second quarter

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Budget carrier SpiceJet Ltd reported a small net profit in the July-September period on Thursday, its third quarterly profit in a row and helped by sliding fuel costs and higher passenger numbers on a smaller fleet.

India's second-biggest budget airline by market share, which came close to collapse late last year after running out of cash, reported a 238 million rupee ($3.6 mln) net profit for the quarter, against a 3.1 billion rupee net loss a year earlier, SpiceJet said in a statement.

In India's fast-growing aviation market, where competition is fierce and operating costs stubbornly high, carriers have found it tough to make money, but tumbling oil prices and a near 20 percent annual jump in passenger numbers have helped ease the pain this year.

The successful stock market debut this week of InterGlobe Aviation Ltd , owner of the biggest and most profitable Indian carrier, IndiGo, reflected the improved outlook for the sector.

Full-service carrier Jet Airways Ltd last month reported its second consecutive quarterly profit after a string of losses.

SpiceJet has returned to profit this year by filling more seats on its planes after reducing its capacity by 34 percent from last year. Its load factor stood at 92.8 percent during the June-September quarter, the airline said.

SpiceJet's shares have nearly tripled this year and are trading at their highest since 2011. They closed up 2.9 percent on Thursday in a Mumbai market that rose 0.5 percent.

"Our third consecutive profitable quarter since we embarked on the revival process, shows that we are on the right track," Chairman and Managing Director Ajay Singh said.

($1 = 66.0250 rupees)

(Reporting by Tommy Wilkes and Swati Bhat; Editing by Mark Potter and Susan Fenton)