Fiji Airways says 2018 to be challenging year amid higher fuel prices

Fiji Airways CE Andre Viljoen says the rising cost of fuel will be one of the airline’s major challenges for 2018 after posting a fourth straight year of record profit in calendar 2017. The airline group, which covers Fiji Airways, Fiji Link and other subsidiaries, reported profit before tax of FJ$95.8m (US$47.19m) for the 12 months to Dec 31 2017, up 13.4% from FJ$84.5m in the prior corresponding period. Revenue rose 12.5% to FJ$825.3m, Fiji Airways said Monday, while passenger numbers increased 14.3% to 1.6m. However, Viljoen described the outlook for the current year as challenging amid the higher oil prices, increased competition, and volatility of the US dollar. “Fuel prices will continue to be a challenge for all airlines and we will not get complacent with the fiscal discipline required to meet our financial targets,” Viljoen said. <br/>