Cathay posts slow 0.5pc increase in passengers
Cathay Pacific Airways saw sluggish growth in passenger numbers last month after its chief executive hinted at tougher cost-cutting measures if demand dropped.
Cathay and subsidiary Hong Kong Dragon Airlines flew 2.13 million passengers in August, up 0.5 per cent from a year earlier but way below the 13 per cent growth over the first seven months.
The percentage of seats sold fell to 78.4 per cent from 83.1 per cent a year earlier.
Chief executive Tony Tyler said on Wednesday the industry was still in the middle of a major crisis and indicated the company would step up cost-control measures if demand started to collapse.
Cathay's mainland routes posted the biggest passenger volume drop of 12 per cent last month, while its North America routes gained 28 per cent on a 31.7 per cent capacity boost.
Cargo volume fell 3.1 per cent to 140,589 tonnes on a 5.4 per cent drop in cargo capacity.
The carrier cut capacity on some long-haul routes to reduce fuel consumption. Cargo-space utilisation rose to 65.9 per cent from 65.3 per cent a year earlier.
Separately, Hong Kong Air Cargo Terminal throughput fell 3.3 per cent year on year last month to 220,574 tonnes, taking the total to 1.7 million tonnes this year, up 3.8 per cent.
