Cathay Pacific Cuts H1 Losses, Passengers Rise | Photo credits: Cathay Pacific – Pressroom
Aug 10 (Reuters) – Cathay Pacific Airways on Wednesday posted a loss of 5 billion Hong Kong dollars (624.31 million euros) for the first half, an improvement on the loss of 7.57 billion Hong Kong dollars over the same period last year, the easing of health rules favoring the increase in the number of passengers.
The airline had said in June that it expected a smaller loss than in the first half of last year, but that the figure would still be “substantial”.
First-half revenue was up 17% to HK$18.6 billion, driven by higher ticket sales and continued strong demand for air cargo. However, passenger numbers in June were 95.2% below pre-pandemic levels.
Hong Kong is one of the few places in the world that still requires people arriving in its territory to self-quarantine. The duration of it will be reduced to three days, officials said this week.
Cathay Pacific reaffirmed that it expects its passenger carrying capacity to reach 25% of pre-pandemic levels by the end of the year, up from 11% in June, and that it will was now targeting positive free cash flow.
The addition of flights is, however, limited by the obligation for crews to spend three days in quarantine in hotels upon their return.
Cathay Pacific said it expects its financial results to improve in the second half compared to the first. Analysts are expecting an annual loss of HK$4.5 billion, according to the average of estimates from 11 analysts collected by Refinitiv. (Reporting Jamie Freed in Sydney; French version Valentine Baldassari, editing by Kate Entringer)