Dubai’s Emirates Group has reported a 2022-23 financial half-year net profit of US$1.2 billion, a record half-year performance. This figure is significant considering an almost US$1.6 billion loss it reported for the same period last year.

The group also reported an EBITDA of US$4.2 billion, a 180 per cent increase over the corresponding period last year.

Group revenue stood at US$ 15.3 billion for the first six months of the 2022-23 financial year, up 128 per cent from US$6.7 billion last year.

At Emirates airline, overall capacity during the first six months of the year increased by 40 per cent to 22.8 billion Available Tonne Kilometres (ATKM). Emirates carried 20 million passengers between April 1 and September 30, 2022, up 228 per cent year-on-year. Emirates profit for the first half of 2022-23 hit a new record of US$1.1 billion, compared to last year’s loss of US$1.6 billion. By September 30, the airline was operating passenger and cargo services to 140 airports, utilising its entire Boeing 777 fleet and 73 A380s.

Emirates said that its operating costs increased by 73 per cent against an overall capacity growth of 40 per cent “mainly due to the substantial increase in fuel costs which more than tripled compared to the same period last year.”

Apart from the airline, the group’s cargo and ground handling, catering and retail, and travel services division – dnata – reported revenue, including other operating income, of US$2 billion, doubled compared to US$1 billion it generated in the same period last year. Overall profit for dnata stood at US$64 million, compared to last year’s figure of US$23 million.

The group’s employee base meanwhile, compared to March 31, 2022, grew 10 per cent to an overall count of 93,893 as of September 30, 2022. Both Emirates and dnata have embarked on extensive recruitment drives.

“The group expects to return to our track record of profitability at the close of our full financial year,” said Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, chairman and chief executive, Emirates Airline and Group. “For the coming months, we remain focussed on restoring our operations to pre-pandemic levels and recruiting the right skills for our current and future requirements. We expect customer demand across our business divisions to remain strong in H2 2022-23. However, the horizon is not without headwinds, and we are keeping a close watch on inflationary costs and other macro-challenges such as the strong US dollar and the fiscal policies of major markets.”

emirates.com