SIA's financials see recovery on the back of rising air travel demand

A nascent recovery in air travel demand enabled Singapore Airlines to cut its net loss for the second half by 85% and bring down its full-year net loss by 75%. The company posted a $125m net loss for the October 2021-March 2022 second half. This is significantly down from the $837m of red ink during the first six months of the current financial year, which began on April 1, 2021. The improvement in the bottomline came on the back of a 69.4% surge in topline revenue to $4.79b during the October 2021-March 2022 second half, compared with $2.83b in the previous six months. But the airline posted an operating profit of $10m during the April-September 2021 period. All this translated into a full-year net loss of $962m, compared with a $4.27b loss during the previous financial year ending March 31, 2021. Revenue for the year to Mar 31, 2022, doubled to $7.62b, from $3.82b a year earlier. But operating losses were trimmed to $610m, from $2.51b during the previous Covid-stricken year. SIA's balance sheet was relatively stable, with total equity at $22.4b, including $4.67b in general reserves. Total cash and bank balances stood at $13.76b, while total debt was $15.69b. The forward numbers look good thanks to a pick up in air travel momentum. Changi Airport's passenger numbers are now at 50% of pre-pandemic levels and could go higher as the traditional June travel period approaches.<br/>