Low-cost carrier Cebu Pacific found itself landing on solid ground in 2023, as it booked a profit of nearly P8 billion on the back of a resurgent demand for air travel.

Based on preliminary data, Cebu Pacific posted a profit of P7.9 billion last year, a reversal of the net loss of P14 billion that it incurred in 2022, as the airline took advantage of the recovering confidence among Filipinos to fly again.

Further, Cebu Pacific served more than 20 million passengers in 2023, improving its load factor to 84 percent.

Airlines measure the load factor, or the number of seats sold against the slots available, to grasp the demand for a certain period. Simply put, the higher the load factor, the better the efficiency of an airline.

Cebu Pacific grew its revenue by 60 percent to P90.6 billion. The airline obtained the bulk of this amount from the passenger business at P62.5 billion. Cebu Pacific also raised its expenses by 20 percent to P82 billion to cover payments for aircraft and fuel orders.

By period, Cebu Pacific traced its strongest performance in the fourth quarter, when it generated revenue of P23.7 billion, lifted by the usual demand for air travel during the holidays.

Cebu Pacific chief finance officer Mark Cezar believes the airline can perform better this year, as it is armed with a war chest of P50 billion for capital expenditures.

 

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