Cathay Pacific Airways (Cathay Pacific), the flag carrying airline of Hong Kong has been forced, for the second time in under a month, to reduce its profit guidance owing to anti-government protests in the city which have forced schools, many businesses and transport links to shut down. The airline confirmed on Wednesday, October 13, that passenger numbers had fallen 7% for the month of October and instead of last months prediction that profit for the second half of the year would be “below” that of the first half of the year, this statement used the phrase “significantly below” the first six months’ HK$1,347 billion (US$172 million).
A number of analysts have already predicted that the carrier will post a loss for the second half of 2019. In the statement, Cathay Chief Customer and Commercial Officer Ronald Lam said: “Overall, we foresee a challenging remainder of 2019 for our airlines,”. “Looking ahead, our advanced bookings continue to show weakness in both inbound and outbound Hong Kong traffic for the rest of 2019, partly offset by moderately increased transit passengers via Hong Kong.”
According to Lam, Cathay Pacific reduced passenger flight capacity by 2-4% versus its original schedule between August and October and made further cuts of 6-7% for November and December. Reuters news agency reports that the carrier is expected to hold an analyst briefing on Thursday, the first under a new management team led by Chief Executive Augustus Tang after the airline’s former head, Rupert Hogg, resigned in August after a crackdown by China’s aviation regulator.
