Cathay sees continued pressure from HK travel restrictions | News

Hong Kong’s journey constraints keep on to hamper the targeted visitors overall performance of home carrier Cathay Pacific, but there are marginal symptoms of advancement, including a narrower 50 %-12 months decline forecast. 

Latest adjustments to Hong Kong’s travel limitations begun to have an impression on traffic figures in May well, says the airline.

During the month, it carried 57,982 passengers, more than double the selection carried in May well 2021, but nonetheless 98% decreased than in May well 2019.

“The introduction of further changes to travel restrictions and quarantine requirements in Hong Kong from 1 May possibly was a welcome progress, though our company all through the month remained constrained,” suggests main consumer and commercial officer Ronald Lam.

“We enhanced our passenger flight ability by 78% compared with April, but we even now only operated about 4% of our pre-pandemic levels. Visitors volume in conditions of RPK amplified 94% thirty day period on thirty day period, and this was driven generally by extensive-haul flights. As a end result, total load aspect reached 60.5%.”

Though Hong Kong has decreased quarantines for inbound travellers, the Special Administrative Location continues to be intently aligned to China’s ‘Zero-Covid’ policy, which seeks to quash all nearby outbreaks.

May’s cargo carried was flat from a yr earlier with May’s ATKs dropping 25% yr on year.

The extension of Shanghai’s Covid-19 lockdown into Might continued to hurt cargo desire, but in direction of the conclusion of May perhaps things picked up as limitations eased in the Chinese metropolis.

“As for Hong Kong, volumes enhanced as cross-border feeder services among Shenzhen and Hong Kong permitted for a more secure stream of cargo, even though it stays down below the capability out there prior to the fifth wave of Covid-19 in Hong Kong,” provides Lam.

“Demand from other areas of our network remained comparatively strong through the month. All round in Could, we operated about 34% of our pre-pandemic cargo flight ability, while load component was 75.7%.”

Cathay provides that the addition of flight ability in the next quarter, as effectively as continued strength in the cargo current market, will help it slim its losses for the very first 50 percent of 2022.