The Shanghai-based airline, one of the country's biggest, has warned it faces a "significant loss" for 2008 after its fuel price hedges turned sour to the tune of 6.2 billion yuan ($906 million).
Speaking after a special shareholders meeting, Liu said China Eastern was unlikely to turn a profit in 2009, given the current weak market conditions.
"I can only say we intend to make a significant reduction in our losses," Liu said. "2009 is going to be a rather difficult year, though I believe we will see an improvement in the latter half of the year."
The government is injecting 7 billion yuan ($1.02 billion) into China Eastern (NYSE:CEA) , and billions more into other carriers, to help tide them through the crisis.
Yahoo News
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