Cebu Air losses shrink to P2.5B

CEBU AIR, Inc. (CEB), the listed operator of budget carrier Cebu Pacific, announced on Thursday that it managed to cut its attributable net loss for the third quarter of the year to P2.54 billion from a loss of P8.20 billion in the same period last year.

The company’s revenues for the quarter reached P16.85 billion, surging from P3.25 billion previously.

This was “propelled by a strong recovery across its business segments,” the company said in an e-mailed statement.

Expenses increased 111.6% to P19.89 billion from P9.4 billion in the same period last year.

“Despite being a lean season, the continuous easing of travel requirements encouraged strong travel demand. For the third quarter, CEB has flown over four million passengers, a 489% increase versus third-quarter last year,” the company said.

Cebu Pacific’s seat load factor rose to 74% from 57.5% last year. “This consequently resulted in the growth of passenger and ancillary businesses by 724% and 725% year on year, respectively,” Cebu Air noted,

The airline’s cargo business posted revenue of at least P2 billion, 41% higher than last year. It flew over 30,300 flights during the quarter or 318% more than the same quarter last year.

“We are encouraged by some notable improvements in our numbers amidst the ongoing challenges related to fuel and foreign exchange rates. We remain cautiously optimistic that through our ongoing initiatives, coupled with a sustained increase in passenger traffic, we will soon see better days ahead,” said Mark Julius V. Cezar, chief financial officer at Cebu Pacific.

For the January-to-September period, the company reduced its attributable net loss to P12.05 billion from a loss of P21.1 billion previously. Revenues for the period jumped to P37.53 billion from P9.15 billion in 2021.

Expenses for the nine-month period rose 79.1% to P48.73 billion from P27.99 billion last year. — Arjay L. Balinbin