SIA chalks up 55% jump in first-half net profit to record $1.44b

Boost comes from strong travel demand; group continues to pay down borrowings

- Ven Sreenivasan

Geopolitical tensions, elevated fuel prices and softer economic conditions did little to prevent Singapore Airlines (SIA) from posting record first-half earnings.

Boosted by strong travel demand, the group booked a record $1.44 billion net profit for the half year to end-September, up 55 per cent from $927 million for the same six months a year ago. Operating profit came in at a record $1.55 billion, a 26 per cent jump.

Revenue was up 9 per cent to $9.16 billion.

The company declared an interim dividend of 10 cents, amounting to $297 million in total payout.

As at Sept 30, the group shareholders' equity stood at $17.3 billion, a decline of $2.5 billion from March 31. This comes after half of the $3.4 billion of mandatory convertible bonds (MCBs) that were issued in June 2021 were redeemed in June 2023. The redemption saw SIA's cash balance decrease by $2.8 billion to $13.5 billion.

The latest half-year results were underscored by strong operating numbers.

SIA and its low-cost unit Scoot carried 17.4 million passengers in the April-September 2023 period, up 52.3 per cent year on year.