Cathay Pacific's passenger traffic edges down MOM in November

Passenger traffic for Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific remained largely stable at 2.01 million passengers in November, edging 0.18% lower month over month but rising 23.1% year over year, the company said late Dec. 20.

The flagship carrier's revenue passenger kilometers increased 25.8% year over year in November, while its capacity, measured in available seat kilometers, expanded 21.3% year over year. Over the same period, the passenger load factor rose 3 percentage points to 83.5%.

In the first 11 months of the year, the number of passengers reached 20.58 million, 27% higher year over year. This growth coincided with a 31.5% rise in ASKs and a 26.7% increase in RPKs over the same period.

"November was another solid month for our travel business ... Travel demand was particularly robust on our routes to Japan and South Korea, driven by traffic from Hong Kong as well as Australia and Southeast Asia. Hong Kong was also a popular destination for travelers from Southeast Asia, where the school holidays drove increased leisure travel demand," Cathay Pacific Chief Customer and Commercial Officer Lavinia Lau said in a statement.

The Platts-assessed FOB Singapore jet fuel/kerosene outright price averaged $89.41/b in November, up 1.69% from $87.93/b in October, S&P Global Commodity Insights data showed.

Meanwhile, the airline carried 142,601 mt of cargo in November, up 0.2% month over month and 15% year over year, Cathay reported. This brought total tonnage over January-November to 1.39 million mt, 10.9% higher year over year.

"We observed healthy market momentum during the peak season, particularly from Hong Kong and other cities in the Greater Bay Area driven by e-commerce sales events," Lau said.

Looking ahead, aviation demand is expected to remain robust in 2025, with Cathay anticipating passenger numbers to return to prepandemic levels.

"Together, Cathay Pacific and HK Express will reach 100% of prepandemic flights from January 2025," Lau said.

On an annual basis, global jet fuel/kerosene demand is expected to grow by 437,000 b/d in 2024 before increasing by 309,000 b/d in 2025, Commodity Insights analysts said.