Cathay Pacific posts wider $834 million loss in 2022, remains upbeat on outlook

Cathay Pacific Airways is acceptable to rebuild the hose and Hong Kong's hub presumption arsenic it emerges from the pandemic, the carrier's main enforcement said connected Wednesday aft it reported a 2022 nonaccomplishment astatine the debased extremity of forecasts.

Cathay shares roseate arsenic overmuch arsenic 1.4% to 7.95 Hong Kong dollars aft the results were released, reversing greeting losses and beating a 2.4% driblet successful the broader market arsenic investors stake connected a turnaround pursuing dense losses during the pandemic.

"We were precise encouraged to spot a agleam airy astatine the extremity of the passageway successful the 2nd fractional of 2022, and the affirmative momentum has continued into 2023," Chief Executive Officer Ronald Lam said successful a statement.

"After 3 brutal years of the Covid-19 pandemic, we person yet entered into a caller breathtaking phase, successful which we volition rebuild Cathay Pacific for Hong Kong."

The hose reported an yearly nonaccomplishment of HK$6.55 cardinal ($834.4 million) for the 12 months ended Dec. 31, wider than the erstwhile year's nonaccomplishment but adjacent the bottommost of its January forecast for a nonaccomplishment of betwixt HK$6.4 cardinal and HK$7 billion.

Analysts had expected an mean yearly nonaccomplishment of HK$4.4 billion, according to Refinitiv data. They forecast a HK$3.9 cardinal nett for this twelvemonth present that Hong Kong and mainland China person ended borderline restrictions.

Cathay had parked overmuch of its fleet successful the godforsaken during the pandemic owed a deficiency of request and its betterment has lagged down accepted rival Singapore Airlines, which faced little strict rules past year.

The hose was severely deed by Covid-related formation cancellations, borderline closures and strict quarantine measures for crew, resulting successful drastic headcount reductions.

Cathay said it was operating astir one-third of pre-pandemic rider formation capableness by December and ended the twelvemonth operating rider flights to 58 destinations, treble the 29 destinations the hose flew to successful January 2022.

It would run astatine astir 70% of its prepandemic rider formation capableness by the extremity of 2023, with an purpose to instrumentality to pre-pandemic levels by the extremity of 2024. It was operating astir two-thirds of pre-pandemic cargo formation capableness levels by the extremity of 2022.