EVA Airways Corp (EVA, 長榮航空), the nation’s second-largest carrier, saw consolidated sales last month mark their highest level in its history, buoyed by strong seasonal demand in the passenger sector and a gradually recovering cargo business.
EVA’s revenue was NT$11.69 billion (US$391.39 million) last month, up 5.41 percent from a year earlier and 3.6 percent from a month earlier, according to the company’s financial data.
For the first eight months of the year, consolidated sales totaled NT$82.35 billion, an increase of 1.91 percent from the same period last year, company data showed.
VACATION
The carrier’s sales performance last month was led by strong passenger demand during the summer vacation period and fell in line with market expectations, while sales in its cargo business showed improvement from July, ending the sequential declines posted in the previous two months.
“Traditionally, airlines see sales and profitability reach their annual peak level in the third quarter,” Capital Securities Corp (群益證券) said in its latest research note.
The rebounding passenger business also led to higher consolidated revenue for China Airlines Ltd (CAL, 中華航空) last month.
CAL, the nation’s largest airline, posted NT$13.03 billion in sales last month, 1.95 percent higher than in the same month a year earlier and 1.2 percent higher than in July, the company said in its stock exchange filing.
CAL’s sales in the first eight months of the year were NT$93.12 billion, down 1.84 percent from a year earlier.
However, Capital Securities said China’s new tourism law, which will take effect in less than a month, could result in uncertainties for Taiwanese airlines in the fourth quarter.
FEARS
The new law will bar tour operators from earning commission on shoppers taking low-cost tours, fueling fears that the cost of visiting Taiwan will rise and reduce demand, stemming the flow of Chinese tourists into Taiwan in the short term, the brokerage said.
Meanwhile, TransAsia Airways (TNA, 復興航空), which focuses on regional passenger business in Asia, saw its consolidated sales reach NT$1.17 billion last month, up 21.67 percent from a year earlier, company data showed.
The NT$1.17 billion generated last month marked the second-highest level in history for TNA, but was lower than the record-high revenue of NT$1.26 billion the carrier recorded in July, statistics showed.
STRATEGY
For the first eight months, TNA’s sales were NT$8.18 billion, rising by 21.67 percent on an annual basis, on the back of the company’s strategy to launch various regional routes this year.
The carrier yesterday said it would start providing non-stop chartered flights between Taoyuan and the Angkor region in Cambodia from Sept. 23, and hoped to offer three regular round-trip flights each week on Airbus A321 aircraft in the future.
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