KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 22 — AirAsia today reported a sharp fall in net profit by almost half for 2011 but the budget carrier posted record revenue.

The airline posted a revenue of RM4.47 billion ringgit for the year, up 13 per cent from 2010.

In a filing to Bursa Malaysia, it said net profit for the financial year, which ended on December 31, was RM564.1 million, compared to RM1.06 billion in 2010.

AirAsia’s chief executive Tan Sri Tony Fernandes said the results were positive given the challenging global environment, adding that the loss in net profit was largely due to unrealised foreign exchange losses on translation and a deferred taxation.

Fernandes said the outlook for AirAsia was positive as the company looks forward to the listing of AirAsia Thailand and AirAsia Indonesia this year.