Cathay first half profit skyrockets

Cathay first half profit skyrockets    Hong Kong-based airline Cathay Pacific said its first half profit rose 724 percent to $880 million.
   Cathay's revenue rose 33.7 percent to $5.3 billion.
   'In the first half of the year the Cathay Pacific Group experienced a continuing and significant recovery in its core business following the extremely challenging conditions experienced for much of the previous year,' the airline said in a statement. 'The turnaround in business that began in the last quarter of 2009 continued into 2010 and gained momentum. Both the passenger and cargo businesses of Cathay Pacific and Dragonair performed well with revenues continuing to increase despite uncertainty over the stability of the global economy.'
   Cathay said its cargo business has been robust throughout the first half, with strong demand in all key markets. The airline's load factor increased 11.8 percent compared with the first half of 2009, hitting what it called a record 78 percent. Volume increased 24.4 percent to 872,000 tons. Cargo revenue increased 63.1 percent to $1.5 billion, while yield rose 36.1 percent to $290 million
   By July, the airline had brought back into service all five aircraft that had been parked during last year's downturn.
   'Fuel is the airline's most significant cost component and fuel prices once again increased in the first half of 2010 — by 51.1 percent compared to the same period in 2009,' Cathay said. 'Managing the risk associated with fuel price changes is a key challenge and objective.'