Cathay Pacific Airways said on Monday it was expecting a critical fall of its first-half results because of the epidemic of the coronavirus.
The airline stated it cut capacity by 40% for February and March and added that April results will be reduced as well. Cathay Pacific and Cathay Dragon, therefore, carried a total of 3,010,012 passengers that represents a 3.8% fall compared to January last year. The two airlines carried 151,964 tonnes of cargo and mail last month, also a fall of 8.9% compared to the same month last year.
Cathay Pacific Group Chief Customer and Commercial Officer Ronald Lam said: "This was the most challenging Chinese New Year period we have experienced. As the novel coronavirus outbreak in mainland China intensified towards the end of the holiday period, travel demand dropped substantially. With more governments worldwide having imposed travel restrictions on passengers from mainland China and in some cases Hong Kong, we are seeing continued cancellations of bookings."
