The company said in a government filing that it expects its fourth-quarter consolidated passenger revenue per available seat mile to increase between 11 and 12 percent year over year.
CHICAGO (Reuters) - UAL Corp <UAUA.O>, parent of United Airlines, said on Wednesday it expects its unit revenue to increase in the fourth quarter helped by capacity reductions on North American routes.
The company said in a government filing that it expects its fourth-quarter consolidated passenger revenue per available seat mile to increase between 11 and 12 percent year over year.
UAL, along with its rivals, has been recovering from a years-long industry downturn. Some experts predict, however, that the progress will be stifled -- if not reversed -- by soaring fuel costs and a softening U.S. economy.
The company said it expects its mainline operating cost per available seat excluding fuel and special items will be up about 7.5 percent for the fourth quarter.
!ADVERTISEMENT!The company, which has hedged 18 percent of its forecast fuel consumption in the fourth quarter, expects to pay an average of $2.60 per gallon of jet fuel.
UAL said it estimates that cargo, mail and other revenue will be between $455 million and $465 million for the quarter.
Shares of UAL were down 8 cents at $34.54 on Nasdaq in early trade.
(Reporting by Kyle Peterson, editing by Dave Zimmerman)
