Lufthansa sticks to 2016 profit target despite Brexit uncertainty

FRANKFURT, July 4 (Reuters) - Lufthansa is still aiming to achieve profits before interest and tax of slightly over 1.8 billion euros ($2 billion) this year, even though Britain's vote to leave the European Union could impact econommic growth in Europe, the German airline group's chief executive said on Monday.

Rival IAG, which owns British Airways, lowered its profit target for 2016 on June 24, saying it expected weaker business travel demand as a result of the uncertainty caused by the vote.

But Lufthansa has not seen any changes to travel in the week following the vote, Carsten Spohr told journalists in Frankfurt.

"We had a buffer from the first few months of the year, so even if we have some weaker months, our guidance remains the same," Spohr said. ($1 = 0.8978 euros) (Reporting by Victoria Bryan; Editing by Tina Bellon)