Soaring fuel prices and unfavorable foreign exchange movements dragged Cebu Pacific into a P5.9-billion net loss in the first half of the year, wiping out the P8.9-billion net profit reported in the same period last year.
The setback was largely driven by a sharp downturn in the second quarter, where the carrier posted a P5.5-billion net loss, reversing its P8.5-billion profit from a year earlier, as fuel expenses more than doubled and triggered an operating loss of P2.7 billion.
“The second quarter was one of the most challenging operating environments we have faced post-pandemic, driven by an unprecedented spike in fuel prices,” said Cebu Pacific Chief Executive Officer Michael Szucs.
Despite cost headwinds, underlying travel demand pushed first-half revenues up 8 percent year-on-year to P68.6 billion. The airline carried nearly 14.5 million passengers, a four percent increase, helped by a percent percent gain in domestic traffic and a two percent uptick in international routes. Second-quarter revenues also expanded seeven percent to P35.2 billion.
Strong demand for budget travel boosted the carrier’s internal domestic market share to 60 percent, up from 55 percent last year, while maintaining an Asia-Pacific leading on-time performance of 84.2 percent.
Szucs remains optimistic about the airline’s trajectory as conditions stabilize: “Despite these external pressures, demand for affordable air travel remained resilient, revenue continued to grow, and we further strengthened our market leadership. As industry capacity becomes more rational and market conditions improve, we remain confident in Cebu Pacific’s long-term growth opportunity and our ability to deliver sustainable value for our shareholders.”