Copa Airlines reports lower profits despite revenue growth in second quarter

Copa Holdings reported its second-quarter 2026 results on August 6, showing a profit but much weaker margins than a year ago. The airline earned $91.7 million in operating profit, but its operating margin fell to 8.7%, down from 21.7% in Q2 2025. Revenue grew 25.7% to $1.1 billion, and the airline carried significantly more passengers. However, fuel costs jumped 85% to $4.28 per gallon, which hurt profitability badly. The football World Cup in June also reduced how full planes were by 2.3 percentage points. About 40% of tickets had already been sold before fuel prices rose. Copa, which flies across Latin America from Panama, now expects full-year margins of 17% to 19% and has raised its capacity growth target to 14%-15%.