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Airbnb boss Chesky on an advertising poster in New York's Times Square: travel boom expected
Photo: CARLO ALLEGRI / REUTERS
The apartment broker Airbnb continues to suffer from the coronavirus crisis and posted deep red numbers at the beginning of the year.
In the first quarter there was a loss of 1.2 billion dollars, as the company announced on Thursday after the US market closed.
A year ago, the minus was only $ 341 million despite the burdens of the pandemic.
Airbnb cited high costs of repaying loans taken out during the pandemic as a main reason for the poorer result.
In fact, business has already recovered significantly from the crisis.
Bookings rose 52 percent year-on-year to $ 10.3 billion, well above analysts' forecasts.
Sales were also higher than expected on the market, with an increase of five percent to $ 887 million.
Airbnb did not give specific goals for the rest of the financial year, but CEO Brian Chesky was optimistic: "We are expecting a travel boom like we've never seen before."
Investors reacted cautiously, however, the share initially fell after the hours.
mik / dpa-AFX