Cathay Pacific's loss widens in FY22 at $6.5b

The airline, however, remains positive about its future.

Hong Kong flag carrier, Cathay Pacific, recorded a loss of $6.5b in FY22, wider than its loss in FY21 of $5.5b (+18.5% YoY).

The FY22 loss translates to a loss per ordinary share of $1.113.

The airline said it had a "difficult start to the year," which had an adverse impact on its monthly operating cash burn.

"Following the Hong Kong SAR government’s initial adjustments to travel restrictions and quarantine requirements from 1st May, we returned to being operating cash generative towards the end of the first half of 2022," the airline said.

"Further adjustments to restrictions came into effect in Hong Kong in the second half of the year, and we were operating cash generative in the second half of 2022 and consequently overall for the full year," it added.

By the end of FY22, the available unrestricted liquidity of the airline stood at $27.2b.

Whilst posting a wider loss in FY22, Cathay Pacific believes it can rebuild itself as an airline that Hong Kong "can be proud of." 

"We have a crystal clear strategy that we are confident will deliver long-term success. To achieve this, we are focused on reconnecting. This means reconnecting Cathay Pacific with Hong Kong, the Greater Bay Area (GBA) and the Chinese Mainland, as well as reconnecting Hong Kong with the world," the airline said.

"We are reconnecting the Hong Kong international aviation hub by rebuilding our flight capacity to serve the needs of Hong Kong, Chinese Mainland and international travel markets," the airline added.

The airline plans to operate at 70% of its pre-pandemic passenger flight capacity by the end of this year and return to its pre-pandemic levels by the end of 2024.