Emirates SkyCargo saw cargo volumes decrease in the first half of the year as a result of difficult market conditions and a runway refurbishment, reports Air Cargo News.
On announcing half-year figures, the Emirates Group said that cargo volumes handled by its airline division decreased by 8% year on year to 1.2m tonnes, while yields declined by 3%.
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“This reflects the tough business environment for air freight in the context of global trade tensions and unrest in some key cargo markets,” the airline said in a statement.
Performance was also affected by the 45-day runway closure at DXB at the start of the year, which had a knock-on effect for Emirates Group’s ground handling arm, dnata, which saw cargo volumes decline by 6% on last year to 1.5m tonnes.
In the UAE, dnata acquired full ownership of freight forwarding company, Dubai Express, which bolstered its revenues in the first half year of 2019-20, and helped soften the impact of losses due to the runway closure.
Looking at overall half-year financial performance, revenues at the Emirates Group declined by 2% year on year to $14.5bn, while profits increased by 8% to $320m.
The improved result at Emirates was driven by “increased agility in capacity deployment, with healthy customer demand for Emirates’ products driving improved seat load factors and better margins”.