Emirates airline cuts annual loss to $1.1 bln as travel rebounds | Reuters

Emirates airline cuts annual loss to $1.1 bln as travel rebounds | Reuters

Dubai's Emirates airline on Friday posted an annual loss of $1.1 billion, a sharp improvement on the $5.5 billion loss in the previous year, as demand for international travel was boosted by governments easing pandemic-related curbs.

The airline, which only operates international services, reported a 91% jump in revenue to $16.1 billion for the year ended March 31 as passenger numbers tripled to 19.6 million.

"Business recovery picked up pace particularly in the second half of the year," Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum said in a statement.

The state-owned airline said it filled 58.6% of seats flown, up from 44.3% a year earlier, while the number of destinations it served increased from 120 at the start of the financial year to more than 140 as of March 31.

It was the airline's second consecutive annual loss and only the fourth in its almost 40-year operational history.