(MENAFN) Delta Airlines Inc. announced posting a 17 percent increase of its second-quarter earnings, as fuel spending declined and passenger movement rose, Arab News reported.

In the second quarter, revenue climbed 9.4 percent to USD10.62 billion from USD9.71 billion quarter-on-quarter, beating analysts’ expectations of USD10.59 billion.

The Atlanta-based company said that net income increased to USD801 million from USD685 million which was registered in the same quarter a year earlier.

The world’s third biggest airlines said that fuel spending dropped 6 percent to USD2.34 billion, offsetting a 6 percent gain in labor costs to USD2.05 billion.