A rebound in demand is expected to lead to Cathay Pacific’s first-half profit of up to $576 million

In light of the surge in travel demand brought on by border reopenings, Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific Airways said on Friday that it anticipates making a profit of up to HK$4.5 billion ($576 million) in the first half of the year.

As a result of the pandemic, flight disruptions due to COVID, and significant workforce reductions, Cathay Pacific experienced unprecedented losses over the past three years.

That is changing as more people choose to fly internationally. For example, Cathay Pacific carried a total of nearly 7.82 million passengers in the first half of this year, up significantly from the meager 335,462 it carried in the same period last year.

The 76-year-old airline reported strong demand on its long-haul routes that are popular with students, including those to North America, the UK, and Australasia.

Due to this, its passenger load factor for the first half of the year was 87.2%, as opposed to 59.2% the year before.

Following the news, Cathay Pacific’s stock increased by as much as 6.3%, reaching a level not seen in nearly seven months. This outperformed the benchmark Hong Kong index, which saw a 0.3% rise.

Airlines all around the world are gaining from a travel recovery that has far outperformed their predictions, driving carriers to expand their fleet, increase aircraft frequencies, and add new destinations.

The outlook for travel in July and August is positive, according to Cathay Pacific.

While the summer months were anticipated to see little change in cargo demand, the airline said it was gearing up for a rise in demand later in the third quarter.

The flagship airline of Hong Kong anticipates a first-half consolidated profit attributable to shareholders of between HK$4 billion and HK$4.5 billion, which includes a one-time gain from the sale of a nearly 1.9 percent investment in Air China.

The loss from a year ago was HK$5.00 billion.

According to a Refinitiv estimate, Cathay Pacific would report a profit for the fiscal year 2023 of HK$3.92 billion, a significant improvement over the HK$7.16 billion loss it had the previous year.