EK Financial results - first half
November 16, 2004
Dubai airline Emirates said on Tuesday its profit surged 41 percent to 865 million dirhams (USD$236 million) in the first half of its financial year.
"Strong passenger and cargo demand coupled with better yields helped to offset higher costs due to escalating jet fuel prices," a company statement said.
Profit for the first six months to end-September last year stood at 612 million dirhams.
Passengers carried rose 25.5 percent to 6.1 million, while cargo revenue climbed 42 percent on a 27 percent increase of tonnage to 401,500 tonnes.
Operating revenue rose to USD$2.2 billion in the first half of this year, from USD$1.6 billion during the same period last year.
Liquidity on September 30 was USD$1.70 billion, down from USD$1.76 billion six months earlier after paying dividends to the carrier's owners, the government of Dubai, one of the seven emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates federation.
Liquidity was also affected by funding capital outflows of around USD$136 million, the statement said.
It said services to Seychelles, Seoul, Hamburg and Geneva would start in 2005, making a total of 81 destinations. Emirates says it has USD$30.3 billion of new aircraft on order.
(Reuters)