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Cathay Pacific carried 526,827 passengers in November, up 652.1% y-o-y, following Hong Kong’s easing of pandemic-related restrictions for inbound travellers
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The airline’s cargo volume was 103,092 tons, down 23.8% y-o-y and 79.9% below the November 2019 level as the cargo peak season didn’t come
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Cathay Pacific says it continued to see positive signs for its travel business as sentiment and demand for travel out of Hong Kong improved steadily
Cathay Pacific’s November passenger traffic rose 652.1% year-on-year as the airline carried 526,827 travelers after Hong Kong lifted most of its pandemic-related travel restrictions to help the local economy and aviation industry recover from the COVID crisis.
Hong Kong’s flag carrier said in a press statement on December 14 that cargo volume fell 23.8% y-o-y last month and was 79.9% below the November 2019 level. Cathay started 2022 with a 31.8% drop in cargo volumes as it grounded most long-haul flights due to the COVID contagion.
The month’s revenue passenger kilometres jumped 565.5% y-o-y, but were down 73.7% from the November 2019 level. Passenger load factor soared 51.7 percentage points to 78.5%, while capacity, measured in available seat kilometers, grew 127.2% y-o-y but were 73.1% below the November 2019 level.
In the first 11 months of 2022, passenger traffic surged 220.5% against a 33.9% increase in capacity and a 211.9% rise in RPKs, versus year-ago levels.
Cathay carried 103,092 tons of cargo last month, 42.1% below levels in November 2019. Cargo revenue ton kilometers fell 27.8% y-o-y, lagging November 2019 levels by 38%.
The cargo load factor fell 15.6 percentage points to 66.9%, while capacity, measured in available cargo ton kilometers (AFTKs), decreased 11% y-o-y, and was down 36.4% versus November 2019. In the first 11 months of 2022, tonnage fell 12.6% y-o-y against a 20.7% capacity decrease and a 30.6% y-o-y drop in RFTKs.
Chief Customer and Commercial Officer Ronald Lam said Cathay continued to see positive signs for its travel business as sentiment and demand for travel out of Hong Kong improved steadily in November.
“We also saw increased visiting friends and relatives traffic into Hong Kong, particularly from long-haul origins such as North America, Europe and the South-West Pacific. Transit traffic via the Hong Kong hub also improved as we grow our network of destinations,” Lam said.
“On average, we carried about 17,600 passengers a day in November, up from around 13,000 in October. Passenger flight capacity increased about 16% versus the previous month. Overall, we operated 27% of pre-pandemic capacity levels in November.”
Cathay added flights to to and from popular places in Japan and Southeast Asia, which saw huge demand from Hong Kong. Japan was Cathay’s top passenger destination while the load factor on these flights stayed high at 86%. In November, Cathay resumed passenger flights to Denpasar, Bali; Tokyo Haneda, and Zurich.
Cargo demand stayed flat in November versus October despite it being the start of the traditional peak cargo period, Lam said. He said Cathay carried 103,092 tons of cargo last month, about 6% less than in October, while cargo flight capacity eased 2% month on month.
“Production activities in the Chinese Mainland and trade flows remained constrained. While we did witness a mild uptick in e-commerce movements into the Americas around the Black Friday shopping period, a similar surge on regional lanes was more short-lived.”
Conversely, movements of perishable goods from South America, Australia and New Zealand were relatively active, prompting Cathay to operate five non-scheduled services from Darwin, Australia, carrying fresh seasonal produce into North Asia, he said.
Building on experience Cathay gained in the past few years and the evolving needs of the pharmaceutical industry, the airline last month repackaged its pharmaceuticals solution under a new name, Cathay Pharma, making it easier for customers to identify all the possible options for pharmaceutical shipments in a more streamlined way, said Lam.
Cathay Pacific welcomed the government’s latest measures to facilitate travel to the city, in particular, ending the Amber Code restrictions for inbound travellers effective December 14. He said the adjustments will help further boost sentiment for travel, especially among visitors, thus aiding travel resumption and strengthening network connectivity at the Hong Kong aviation hub.
“Regarding cargo, our expanding passenger travel network will provide our cargo customers with more destinations and greater frequencies to choose from as well,” Lam said, adding he expects the air cargo market headwinds to continue in the short term until supply chains in China become more stable and inventory levels in key consumer markets decline.
