Low-cost carrier Tigerair Taiwan Ltd (台灣虎航) yesterday said its operating performance this year would be better than last year’s on the back of an increase in passenger flights and the addition of new routes.
The airline, a subsidiary of China Airlines Ltd (CAL, 中華航空), said that it would strive to distribute dividends to shareholders beginning next year, as it is scheduled to begin trading on the main bourse by the end of this year.
Tigerair’s shares are listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange’s Taiwan Innovation Board, on which they rose 1.78 percent to NT$68.70 yesterday.
Photo: CNA
“Tigerair Taiwan aims to continue surpassing itself ... and let’s wait and see what’s next,” Tigerair chairman Kevin Chen (陳漢銘) told a news conference in Taipei.
Established in 2014 as a joint venture between Singapore-based Tiger Airways Ltd and CAL before becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of CAL in 2017, Tigerair offers flights to 28 destinations in Asia on 41 routes.
With its fleet of 15 Airbus 320s, the airline has launched 14 new routes amid a global tourism boom in the post-COVID-19 pandemic era, Tigerair said in a statement.
The launch of a new route between Taoyuan and Miyazaki, Japan, on Nov. 26 would mark the airline’s 20th destination in Japan, Tigerair said, adding that it has the most flights to Japan and South Korea among Taiwanese carriers.
Due to the surge in the number of people traveling abroad and the increase in overseas destinations after the pandemic, Tigerair’s cumulative revenue from January to September this year was NT$12.64 billion (US$395.4 million), an annual increase of 39.65 percent and surpassing its revenue of NT$12.47 billion for the whole of last year.
The airline posted net profit of NT$2.48 billion in the first three quarters, the most for the period in its history, or earnings per share of NT$5.52, up from NT$3.17 in the same period last year.
Gross margin and operating margin improved to 32 percent and 26 percent respectively in the first three quarters, the airline said.
With the arrival of maple leaf viewing, skiing, and the Christmas and New Year holidays in Japan and South Korea, the tourism market would remain strong this quarter, Tigerair said.
The airline would continue adding new destinations and routes to serve customers, it said.
International travel demand last year had almost returned to pre-pandemic levels and global passenger demand might grow 3.8 percent this year, the International Air Transport Association said.
The Asia-Pacific region is seen as a key market for further demand growth, the association said.
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