Editorial | Hong Kong’s MTR back on track with ambitious plan
- Hong Kong’s sole railway operator returns to profit in recurrent business and is now in position to restore high standards behind its enviable global reputation
Further evidence that Hong Kong’s economy is returning to health came last week when the MTR Corporation reported HK$2.43 billion (US$311 million) in profits from recurrent business in the first half of the year.
The city’s sole rail operator, which is also a property developer, is majority government-owned.
News that it posted a rebound from its HK$678 million loss in the same period last year was all the more welcome coming a day after a positive earnings report from the city’s flagship airline, Cathay Pacific.
MTR fortunes were derailed by losses that mounted during the double whammy of the 2019 social unrest and the pandemic. The MTR Corp lost money for the first time since its listing two decades ago when it posted a deficit of HK$4.8 billion in 2020.
Despite an 11.7 per cent fall in first-half net profit to HK$4.17 billion, which included a drop in property development earnings, it has now posted a strong showing in recurrent operations.
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Such operations cover transport services, railway station commercial businesses, property rental and management, as well as mainland and international railway services.