US Airways Group on Thursday reported a second-quarter net profit, reversing a year-ago loss and beating expectations on lower fuel costs, but said it is not counting on a quick rebound in travel demand.

The company said its second-quarter net profit amounted to $58 million, or 42 cents per share, compared with a loss of $568 million, or $6.17 per share, a year ago.

Excluding one-time items, the company lost 77 cents per share, which compares with a Wall Street consensus forecast for a loss of 84 cents per share, according to Reuters Estimates.

Shares in US Airways rose 3 cents to $2.08 on the New York Stock Exchange.

The company reported a realized fuel hedging loss of $135 million.

Looking forward to the second half of 2009, the revenue environment continues to be difficult to forecast, Chief Executive Doug Parker said in a statement.

We have seen an encouraging though modest improvement in revenues over the past several weeks, he said. But we are not counting on a quick recovery.

The airline industry has been battered by a steep decline in business travel demand as companies slog through the economic recession.

The carrier said its revenue fell 18.4 percent to $2.66 billion. The company ended the quarter with $2.3 billion in cash and investments.

(Reporting by Kyle Peterson; Editing by Brian Moss)

U.S.