Strong demand doubles Cathay profit outlook to record high

HONG KONG's Cathay Pacific Airways has announced that it estimates its consolidated profit for 2010 will HK$12.5 billion (US$1.61 billion) at least due to strong demand.

The news, Bloomberg reported, caused Cathay stock to rise five per cent to HK$23.60 as of 11:16am on Hong Kong stock exchange, poised to hit its record high set in March 1990.The stock has surged 60 per cent this year, said the news agency.

Such profit forecast has taken into account the aggregate profits of HK$2.165 billion from the sale of its interests in Hong Kong Air Cargo Terminals Limited (Hactl) and Hong Kong Aircraft Engineering Company (HAECO), and the European Commission's imposition of a EUR57.12 million (US$77.6 million) fine on the airline.

Another contributing factor are strong profits from Cathay partner, Air China, for the nine months ended 30 September 2010. The Hong Kong carrier expects to record a share of HK$1.7 billion in profits from Air China in the second half.

Net income will likely climb to at least HK$12.5 billion in 2010 on rebounding travel demand and asset sales, the airline said. That surpasses the HK$11.9 billion average of 18 analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg.
(Source:www.schednet.com)