Emirates airline H1 profit at Dh1.7bn

Emirates Group today announced its half-year results which show a robust performance despite continued global economic pressure and high fuel prices, and reflect the group’s steady focus on its long-term vision and business growth.

The Emirates Group revenues reached Dh42.3 billion ($11.5 billion) for the first six months of its current fiscal year ending 30 September 2013, up 13 per cent from Dh37.5 billion ($10.2 billion) at September 30, 2012.

“The global business environment continues to be challenging. We have stayed agile even as we grow, and this ability to adapt and act quickly has been key to our success.

“Our investments in the infrastructure of both Emirates and Dnata continue to pay off and while we keep a close watch on managing our immediate business targets, we never lose sight of our long-term goals, and that is why we continue to invest to build the business,” said Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates airline and Group.

Net profit for the group rose to Dh2.2 billion ($600 million), an increase of 4 per cent over the last year’s results.

The group’s cash position on September 30, 2013, was at Dh18.2 billion ($4.9 billion), compared to Dh27 billion ($7.3 billion) as at March 31, 2013.

This is after a Dh1.8 billion bond repayment which matured in July 2013, a Dh367 million first instalment payment on a $1 billion Sukuk, and a Dh7 billion injection back into the business to fund new aircraft, engines, spares and other projects across the group.

In the past six months, the group continued to invest in and expand its employee base, increasing its overall staff count by 11.7 per to over 75,800 compared with March 31, 2013.

During the first six months of the fiscal year, Emirates received 10 wide-body aircraft – six A380s, three 777s and one 777 freighter, with 15 more new aircraft scheduled to be delivered before the end of the financial year (March 31, 2014).

Emirates also invested in its network by launching services to two new destinations – Haneda and Stockholm, bringing the total count of new routes launched in the past 12 months to seven including Adelaide, Lyon, Phuket, Warsaw and Algiers.

Despite the fundamental challenges of high fuel prices, a still-recovering global economy, and a strong performance of the US dollar against other major currencies impacting revenues, Emirates continues to make a profit. In the first half of the 2013-14 fiscal year, Emirates net profit is Dh1.7 billion ($475 million), up 2 per cent from the same period last year.

“Emirates’ half-year scorecard shows a steady demand for our products and services. Our capacity and route growth continue to match and meet passenger demand. High fuel prices, accounting for 39 per cent of our expenditures, and the unfavourable currency exchange environment continue to eat into our profits.

“However, we remain steadfast in our vision to be the airline of choice for international air services, and we will invest in our people and our infrastructure, and work closely with our partners to bring this to fruition,” said Sheikh Ahmed.

Operating the world’s largest fleet of A380s and the largest fleet of Boeing 777s, Emirates continues to provide ever better connections for its customers across the globe with just one stop in Dubai, by investing in its route network.

It now flies to 137[1] destinations in 77 countries, up from 126 cities last year in 74 countries. The airline’s new destinations since April 1, 2013 – Haneda, Stockholm, Clark, Conakry, and Sialkot – include key cities and regional airports currently underserved by non-stop international services.

Additional new routes to be added in the remaining part of the fiscal year include Kabul, Kiev, Taipei and Boston.

The Emirates A380 has also celebrated five years of operations, carrying over 18 million passengers since its first flight on 1 August 2008 from Dubai to New York.

In the first-half of its financial year 2013-14, Emirates posted strong business growth, both in terms of capacity on offer and traffic carried. This performance has been in sharp contrast to the current trend seen across the aviation industry.

Capacity measured in Available Seat Kilometres (ASKM), grew by 16.9 per cent, whilst passenger traffic carried measured in Revenue Passenger Kilometres (RPKM) was up 16.1 per cent with Passenger Seat Factor sustained at a high level, averaging 79.2 per cent, slightly below last year’s 79.7 per cent.

Emirates carried 21.5 million passengers since April 1, 2013, up 15 per cent from the same period last year.

The volume of cargo uplifted was up by 5.2 per cent, a remarkable growth and performance against the market trend.
Emirates revenue, including other operating income, of Dh39.8 billion ($10.8 billion) was higher by 12 per cent compared with Dh35.4 billion ($9.6 billion) recorded last year, reflecting passenger demand and strong yield.

dnata continues its strong performance, building on the success of its investments in international business growth and infrastructure which now span 38 countries.

Dnata’s revenue including other operating income is Dh3.7 billion ($1 billion), 18 per cent higher compared to Dh3.2 billion ($864 million) last year. Overall profit for dnata rose strongly by 13 per cent to Dh458 million ($125 million).

Dnata’s airport operations was the largest contributor to revenues with Dh1.4 billion ($375 million), a 16 per cent increase compared to Dh1.2 billion ($324 million) in the same period last year. Across its operations, the number of aircraft handled by dnata rose to 141,845, an increase of 9 per cent.

Dnata’s in-flight catering operation, recorded strong growth and contributed Dh891 million ($243 million) of its total revenue, up 39 per cent.

The number of meals uplifted was at 22.4 million meals for the first half of the fiscal year, up a massive 81 per cent compared to last year.

These increases mainly reflect its acquisition of Servair in Italy in June 2013.
Revenue from dnata’s Travel Services operation contributed Dh303 million ($83 million), up 16 per cent from the same period last year.

Dnata’s cargo handling division also witnessed upward growth with revenues increasing by 4 per cent to Dh546 million ($149 million) on account of increased tonnage mainly for dnata’s UK operation and in Switzerland which rose in total by 2 per cent to 809,236 tonnes.

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