American Airlines beats on profit expectations as fuel costs drop

US carrier American Airlines exceeded expectations in its third quarter profits released on Thursday, despite a decline compared with the same period last year.

Earnings were at $1.76 per share, 7 cents better than the $1.69 average from analysts.

The world's largest airline benefited from a rise in domestic fares, as well as an improvement on its Latin American routes.

Sales fell 1.1% to $10.6bn, the Texas-based carrier said in a statement Thursday, having been predicted by analysts to be $10.5bn.

"With integration successes like this behind us, we are even more excited about the future. We are investing in our people and our product and are well along the path to restoring American as the greatest airline in the world," said chairman and CEO Doug Parker.

US airlines are said to be under pressure from investors to pull back from adding seats to tighten supply, as revenue per seat per mile has consistently declined over the last 18 months.