Swire Pacific, parent company of struggling Cathay Pacific, reports first ever annual loss and expects a tough 2021
- The group reported a US$1.42 billion loss last year, primarily caused by an unprecedented slump at its 45 per cent-owned airline
- Swire warned of a tough year ahead, with probable further losses to come
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Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific Airways posts record loss of HK$21.6 billion for 2020
“It is a bit dangerous to predict whether we have recovered from the worst, but we are very encouraged by the pace of the vaccines being approved. By the middle of the year, we think there will be very good take-up of the vaccination in Hong Kong and life will be much easier.”
The chairman, a member of the sixth generation of a family that traces its roots in mainland China back more than 150 years, was speaking during the company’s annual results briefing on Thursday.
Excluding changes in the value of investment properties, the group recorded an underlying loss in 2020 of HK$3.97 billion, compared with an underlying profit of HK$17.8 billion in 2019.
The conglomerate said it has never seen an underlying loss since its listing in 1959.