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Emirates Group records 24th consecutive year of profits

By GNA
Business & Finance Emirates Group records 24th consecutive year of profits
MAY 11, 2012 LISTEN

Accra, May 11, GNA- The Emirates Group comprising Emirates Airline, Emirates SkyCargo and Dnata has announced its 24th consecutive year of profit, recording AED2.3 billion (629 million US dollars) net profit in the 2011/2012 financial year.

In a statement released on Thursday, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates Airline and Group, said with unprecedented economic pressure and record high fuel prices, achieving the 24th consecutive year of profit and maintaining an upward growth trajectory was an achievement that belied the industry norm.

Released today in the Group's 2011-12 Annual Report, the company posted the AED 2.3 billion (629 million US dollars) net profit, with D marking its highest ever profit in 52 years of operation.

Despite fundamental challenges, the Group's revenue reached a record high, climbing to AED 67.4 billion (18.4 billion US dollars) an increase of 17.8% on last year's results. The Group's cash balance grew by 9.5% reaching a strong AED 17.6 billion (4.8 billion US dollars).

Throughout the 2011-12 financial year, the Group collectively invested close to AED 14 billion (3.8 billion US dollars) in new products and also continued to invest in and expand its employee base, despite difficult operating environment, increasing its overall staff count by more than 10 percent.

“Successful business growth is not a matter of luck; it is the result of sustained and calculated investment. Every dirham that we earn is strategically ploughed back into our business and it is this foresight that has allowed the Group to maintain such strong and consistent profitability” said Sheikh Ahmed.

During the year under review, Emirates received 22 new aircraft, its highest in any single year, funded by a wide variety of financing structures. With an increased fleet, Emirates further invested in its network by adding 11 new destinations and increasing capacity to 34 cities, a record for the airline.

“Managing volatile exchange rates, coupled with our highest ever fuel bill has required immense tenacity. Retaining growth and remaining profitable in these challenging economic times shows our profound understanding of the markets that we do business in,” added Sheikh Ahmed.

Dnata stayed true to its proven acquisition strategy, gaining a majority stake in online travel agency, Travel Republic Ltd and a 50% interest in Wings Inflight Services in South Africa. Results for 2011-12 highlight that 55% of Dnata's revenue was derived from its international operations, an increase of 17 percentage points over last year.

The statement said with the company facing several challenges in the 2011-12 financial year, including an increase in Emirates' fuel bill by 44.4% over last year to reach AED 24.3 billion (6.6 billion US dollars) and operating costs by 24% compared to a revenue increase of 16.2% over last year, Emirates bore the brunt of the crippling cost of fuel for nearly one year, before reluctantly introducing a fuel surcharge on all tickets.

Also Emirates had an operationally challenging year with the political unrest across the Middle East and North Africa affecting flight schedules which was addressed by keeping a tight focus on operations and modifying capacity and schedules.

Carrying a record 34 million passengers, an increase of 8%, Emirates logged a robust Passenger Seat Factor, at 80.0%, remaining consistent with last year's results. With an increase in seat capacity - Available Seat Kilometres (ASKMs) of 9.8% the result highlights a strong consumer desire to fly on Emirates' state-of-the-art aircraft.

Passenger yield increased by 7.8% to 30.5 fils (8.3 US cents) per Revenue Passenger Kilometre (RPKM), up from 28.3 fils (7.7 US cents) in 2010-11.

Bucking the industry trend, the 2011-12 financial year has been a strong one for Emirates SkyCargo with revenues of AED 9.5 billion (2.6 billion US dollars) an 8.4% increase on last year on account of an increase in freight tonnage and freight yield per Freight Tonne Kilometre (FTKM) which rose by 5.4%.

With the bulk of the cargo industry reporting downward tonnage, Emirates SkyCargo's tonnage increase of 1.7% reaching 1,796,000 tonnes showcases its persistence to grow revenues against the industry norm.

The statement said revenue generated from across Emirates' six regions continued to be well balanced, with no region contributing more than 30% of overall revenues. East Asia and Australasia remained the highest revenue contributing region with AED 18.2 billion (5.0 billion US dollars) up 17.6% from 2010-11. Europe, up 18.2 percent to AED 17.1 billion ( 4.6 billion US dollars) and the Americas up 21.3%t to AED 6.7 billion (1.8 billion US dollars) also saw significant growth, reflecting new destinations as well as increased frequency and capacity to these regions.

Across the rest of the globe Emirates saw strong revenue increases from West Asia and the Indian Ocean up 10.6% to AED 7.1 billion (1.9 billion US dollars), Gulf, Middle East and Iran up 15.1% to AED 6.3 billion (1.7 billion US dollars) and Africa with AED 6.1 billion (1.7 billion US dollars) in revenue, up 9.5%.

GNA

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