Norwegian having ‘one of the best summers ever’ as bookings stay strong

Norwegian is seeing no slowdown in the strong bookings trends it has experienced so far this summer, with its profitable second-quarter performance expected to extend into the current three-month period. Outlining its results for the April-June period on 24 August, the Scandinavian low-cost carrier reported an operating profit of NKr651m ($61m) on operating revenue up 41% year on year at NKr6.9b. Its net profit came in at NKr538m. While Norwegian’s profitability has fallen significantly on a year on year basis, that is only because the carrier booked the reversal of an impairment in Q2 2022, which hugely inflated its profitability in that period. “The summer season of 2023 will be one the best in our history and I am happy that forward bookings remain strong with business travel returning and others planning their autumn holidays,” says Norwegian chief executive Geir Karlsen. “All in all, it looks promising,” he continues. “That’s why we can say that the third quarter is going to be an historically strong quarter, no doubt about that.” Karlsen notes that the booking strength in November and December is too early to call at this stage, “as the booking curve is still relatively short”. <br/>