China Eastern said incorrect bets on fuel prices had cost it 6.2bn yuan

China Eastern Airlines has reported a 15.3bn yuan ($2.2bn; £1.5bn) loss for 2008, blaming high fuel costs and falling passenger numbers.

The previous year, the airline had reported a profit of 378.6m yuan.

The carrier said that revenues had fallen 3% to 41bn yuan, while expenses had risen by 32% to 56.8bn yuan.

It added that it did not expect to return to profit until 2011. On Wednesday, rival China Southern Airlines reported a 4.8bn yuan loss.

China Eastern had previously warned that it expected a significant loss for 2008 after a wrong-way bet on fuel hedging contracts cost it 6.2bn yuan.

Falling demand

The airline blamed the poor results on record fuel prices and weaker passenger demand due to the global financial crisis and intense domestic competition.

"These have a greater impact on the group's results," said chairman Liu Shaoyong.

China Eastern received a 7bn yuan capital injection from the government last year.

Major Chinese carriers have also been exempted from a tax on fuel surcharges since 1 January 2007.

Separately on Thursday, Singapore Airlines said that passenger numbers in March were down 23% on a year ago.

Earlier in the week, Australian airline Qantas cut its profit forecast by more than half and said it would have to make job cuts in order survive the economic downturn.