Tiger Airways in the red but cuts loss

Ana Ghoib Syeikh Malaya 10:46 PG
SINGAPORE - Tiger Airways went into the red in its last financial year but the losses were less severe than in the previous 12 months.

The Singapore-based budget carrier has reported a $45.4 million loss in the 12 months to March 31 compared with $104.3 million a year earlier.

The better performance was mainly on the back of more passengers carried and stronger yields. That helped lift turnover to $866.2 million from $618.2 million.

The pick-up in passenger numbers also boosted fourth-quarter operating profit to $12.7 million, a turnaround from a $17.2 million loss in the same quarter a year before.

There was still a net loss of $15.4 million for the three months, down from a loss of $16.4 million while revenue jumped from $161.1 million to $240.6 million for the quarter.

Loss per share for the 12 months was 5.53 cents, less than the 14.94 cents a year ago, while net asset value per share fell to 24 cents as of March 31 from 30 cents a year earlier.

Group chief executive Koay Peng Yen said on Friday: "We are extremely encouraged to have achieved a second straight quarter of operating profit, and are looking forward to delivering a sustained turnaround upon the completion of the Tiger-Virgin joint venture in mid-July."

The partnership with the Australian airline is a key part of Tiger's plan to boost its loss-making unit Down Under.

In the six years since operations started, Tiger Airways Australia has never reported an operating profit.

In July 2011, its wings were clipped when the Australian civil aviation authority grounded all its planes over safety concerns, hurting operations and reputation.

Both airlines have received the necessary approvals from regulators for Virgin to take a 60 per cent stake in Tiger.

The Singapore head office will then focus on the airline's Asian operations, which include a Singapore-based carrier, as well as joint ventures in Indonesia and the Philippines.

Mr Koay told a tele-conference yesterday that the firm's stakes in Indonesia's Mandala Airlines and South East Asian Airlines (Seair) in the Philippines are promising given that the two countries are the biggest in Asia.

 

 

 

Source News Asia One NST