Content Server
Content Server
COMPANY PROFILE
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Company Overview
COMPANY OVERVIEW
Cathay Pacific Airways Limited (Cathay Pacific) is an international airline company. It provides scheduled
air passenger and cargo services to several countries and territories. The group operates through the
wide-body aircraft fleet, one of the youngest fleets in the sector. It also offers airline catering, ramp and
passenger handling, ground-handling, cargo and aircraft maintenance services. Cathay Dragon, a wholly
owned subsidiary, is one of the major regional players that operate scheduled services to Mainland
China. Cathay Pacific operates as a member of one-world global alliance, which gives its combined
services to 1,000 destinations. It has operational presence across North Asia, the Middle East, South
East Asia, Southwest Pacific, Europe, Africa and North America. Cathay Pacific is headquartered in Hong
Kong
The company reported revenues of (Hong Kong Dollars) HKD92,751 million for the fiscal year ended
December 2016 (FY2016), a decrease of 9.4% over FY2015. The operating loss of the company was
HKD525 million in FY2016, compared to an operating income of HKD6,664 million in FY2015. The net
loss of the company was HKD575 million in FY2016, compared to a net profit of HKD6,000 million in
FY2015.
Key Facts
KEY FACTS
Business Description
BUSINESS DESCRIPTION
Cathay Pacific Airways Limited (Cathay Pacific) is an international airline service provider and offers
passenger and cargo transportation services across 43 countries and territories. Its business is supported
by its main subsidiaries including Cathay Pacific Freighter, Cathay Dragon and Air Hong Kong.
The company reports through two reportable business segments: Airline and Non-airline services.
The Airline segment comprises the Group’s passenger and cargo operations. The passenger services are
managed by Cathay Pacific and Cathay Dragon which in combined carried 34.3 million passengers in
2016. Also, the company has introduced some new routes and increased frequencies on existing routes,
resulting in the increased capacity of the group by 2.4% in 2016. Cargo services is another segment in
which Cathay pacific possesses expertise and offers its services around the globe through its different
subsidiaries including Air Hong Kong Limited, Air China Limited and Air China Cargo Co., Ltd,. The wholly
owned subsidiary of the group, Cathay Pacific Services Limited (CPSL) operates cargo terminal at Hong
Kong International Airport. In FY2016, Airline segment reported revenue of HK$91,478 million, which
accounted for 98.6% of the group’s total revenue.
The Non-irline segment comes under non-airline services which include, catering, recovering, ground
handling, and aircraft ramp handling services and cargo terminal operations and other services. The
catering business is done by the group’s wholly owned subsidiary, Cathay Pacific Catering Services
(H.K.) Limited (CPCS) which operates principal flight kitchen in Hong Kong and provides services to 45
international airlines in Hong Kong. The other subsidiary, Hong Kong Airport Services Limited (HAS)
provides ramp and passenger handling businesses in Hong Kong. In FY2016, the Non-airline segment
reported revenue of HK$1,273 million, which accounted for 1.4% of the total revenue.
Geographically, the company has operations in six regions: North Asia; India, the Middle East, Pakistan
and Sri Lanka; Southwest Pacific and South Africa; Southeast Asia; Europe and North America. In
FY2016, North Asia region accounted for 50.6% of the company’s total revenue, followed by the North
America (13.0%), Southeast Asia (8.3%), Europe (8.7%), Southwest Pacific and South Africa (4.0%) and
India, the Middle East, Pakistan and Sri Lanka (9.5%).
History
HISTORY
The company expanded its services to Europe and North America.
The company launched a website for its cargo services, providing customers access to a range of new
features such as track and trace functions for shipment status.
Cathay Pacific opened 'The Arrival', Hong Kong International Airport's first airline-branded arrival lounge.
The company launched a code-share service with Air Pacific, placing its 'CX' code on the Fijian carrier's
new twice-weekly flight between Hong Kong and Nadi in Fiji.
The company announced a code-share arrangement with LAN Peru to further enhance the airline's
coverage in Latin America.
Cathay Pacific expanded its code-share arrangement with Japan Airlines to cover more destinations
within Japan.
Cathay Pacific added Honolulu to its network with a new code-share agreement with Japan Airlines.
Cathay Pacific completed the first stage of renovations at The Wing, its signature business class lounge
in Hong Kong International Airport.
The company expanded code share agreement with oneworld alliance partner American Airlines to add
11 new destinations to its network in the US.
Cathay Pacific announced a code-share service with oneworld alliance partner, Japan Airlines, to cover
more destinations within Japan. Under the arrangement, Cathay Pacific's ‘CX’ code will be placed on
selected Japan Airlines domestic flights between Haneda Airport in Tokyo and eight Japanese cities,
Izumo, Miyazaki, Misawa, Matsuyama, Nagasaki, Oita, Tokushima and Ube; between Tokyo's Narita
Airport and Nagoya; and between Sapporo and Nagoya.
The company entered into a code-share agreement with oneworld alliance partner, American Airlines, to
add the Brazilian cities of Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro to its network. Under the agreement, Cathay
Pacific's ‘CX’ code will be placed on American Airlines' daily services between New York and Sao Paulo
and New York and Rio de Janeiro.
Cathay Pacific announced plans to enter into an agreement with Airbus to convert 16 of its previously
ordered Airbus A350-900 aircraft into larger Airbus A350-1000 aircraft and to exercise an option to
purchase an additional 10 Airbus A350-1000 aircrafts.
Cathay Pacific formed a code-share agreement with Air New Zealand for services operated by both
airlines between New Zealand and Hong Kong.
The company unveiled its newly refreshed First Class product which features a significant enhancement
to the cabin's look.
The company and Dragonair together with Asia Miles announced the availability of mileage accrual in
more Economy fare classes on both airlines.
Cathay Pacific launched a twice-weekly scheduled freighter service to Columbus, Ohio, subject to
government approval. The company also launched a new daily service from Newark Liberty International
Airport to Hong Kong.
The company expanded its freighter services into Latin America by launching a thrice-weekly scheduled
service to Mexico City.
Managing airline Qantas, together with joint owners and oneworld partners Cathay Pacific and British
Airways, unveiled the new Los Angeles Business Lounge at Los Angeles International Airport.
Cathay Pacific commenced a new four-times-weekly non-stop service from Boston Logan International
Airport to Hong Kong, subject to government approval.
Cathay Pacific Cargo signed an agreement with DoKaSch Temperature Solutions for renting the latest-
technology active containers, the RKN and RAP Opticooler.
Cathay Pacific entered into codeshare agreement with LATAM Airlines Brasil to provide additional
connections to the customers when travelling between Asia and South America through Europe and the
US gateways.
The company expanded its non-stop Boston to Hong Kong service from four flights per week to a daily
non-stop service.
The company added four weekly flights to enhance its summer service frequency to Toronto, Canada.
Cathay Pacific along with Cathay Dragon launched the latest edition of Vantage Pass promotion to
enable passengers to commence the journeys in Hong Kong to travel with business and premium
economy class flight combinations to 80 worldwide destinations.
Cathay Pacific announced the introduction of a new seasonal service between Hong Kong and
Christchurch.
The company announced the merger of the Cathay Dragon website into the Cathay Pacific website.
Cathay Pacific commenced flight CX675 from Hong Kong to Tel Aviv with the Airbus A350 aircraft.
The company signed a codeshare agreement with the Lufthansa Group on flights operated by Lufthansa,
Swiss and Austrian Airlines. Under the agreement, Cathay Pacific would offer 14 new destinations in
Germany, Belgium, Hungary, Norway, Italy, Switzerland and Austria with the “CX” code.
In February, the company and Synchrony Financial introduced co-branded Visa credit card.
In May, the company signed a new codeshare agreement with oneworld partner Iberia to offer more
options for its customers travelling between Hong Kong, Spain and Portugal.
In July, the company selected DHL Supply Chain to handle aircraft service parts logistics for its mainline
fleet in Hong Kong.
In August, Cathay Pacific Group signed a Memorandum of understanding Airbus, for 32 A321neo single-
aisle aircraft.
In May, Cathay Pacific signed a code share agreement with Iberia that will provide customer with more
travel options within Spain ,Portugal and Hongkong as well as enable to strength Europe networks as well
as to develop one world alliance.
Cathay Pacific expanded its freighter services in the Americas with the addition of a twice-weekly
scheduled service to Portland International Airport.
The company's wholly owned airline, Dragonair was rebranded as Cathay Dragon. The two will remain as
separate airlines, operating under their own licenses.
The company launched its first flight to Dusseldorf, with CX379 departing Hong Kong. Cathay Pacific also
introduced new aircraft in its fleet livery.
Air New Zealand and Cathay Pacific re-authorised their strategic agreement on the Auckland - Hong
Kong route until 2019.
AerFin was selected by Cathay Pacific to provide an end-of-life solution for the fleet of 11 A340-300
aircraft operated by the Hong Kong-based carrier.
Cathay Pacific expanded its code-share agreement with the Flybe Group, enabling passengers travelling
from Hong Kong to connect to four destinations in the UK via Amsterdam or Paris.
Cathay Pacific entered into a new code-share agreement with the Flybe Group that will connect
passengers travelling from Hong Kong to seven destinations in the UK via Manchester.
Cathay Pacific added a fourth daily direct flight from Los Angeles to Hong Kong.
The company joined Mexico's BSP booking system, allowing Mexican travel agents to book Cathay
Pacific flights.
The company ordered a further four aircraft, three Boeing 777-300ER airplanes along with one more
Boeing 747-8 freighter, from Boeing.
Cathay Pacific purchased 21 Boeing 777-9X aircraft priced at approximately HK$58 billion to be delivered
between 2021 and 2024.
The company launched a new code-share agreement with Air Seychelles that added the Seychelles to its
network.
Cathay Pacific opened The Bridge, the airline's sixth passenger lounge, at Hong Kong International
Airport (HKIA).
Cathay Pacific and The Langham joined together and launched a new inflight menu promotion.
Cathay Pacific launched a new scheduled freighter service to Guadalajara, Mexico. The company also
launched a new four-times-weekly service to the Maldives.
Cathay Pacific announced a new code-share agreement with oneworld partner, S7 Airlines enabling the
company to reach three additional destinations in Russia, including St. Petersburg, Vladivostok and
Khabarovsk.
Cathay Pacific in partnership with sister airline Dragonair launched the 'Premium Bundle Fares' promotion
in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong Aircraft Engineering Company (HAECO) and Cathay Pacific teamed up to form a joint venture
company, HAECO ITM (HXITM) to provide inventory technical management services to Cathay Pacific,
Dragonair, as well as other airline customers.
Cathay Pacific opened a new First and Business Class Lounge for passengers travelling out of Paris
Charles De Gaulle (Roissy) Airport.
Shanghai Airport Authority, Shanghai International Airport, Air China Limited and Cathay Pacific
established a joint venture company in Shanghai for the provision of airport ground handling services at
Shanghai Pudong International Airport and Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport.
Air China Cargo (ACC) commenced operation as a joint venture cargo carrier between Air China and
Cathay Pacific.
Cathay Pacific implemented 100% electronic air waybills (e-AWB) in Hong Kong.
Cathay Pacific entered into a letter of intent with the Airbus to buy 30 Airbus A350-900 aircraft. The
company also announced a new code-share agreement with Alaska Airlines to further boost connections
The company opened Cathay Pacific Cargo Terminal in the Hong Kong International Airport's cargo area.
Cathay Pacific and Panasonic Avionics signed a memorandum of understanding for the provision of full
broadband connectivity on all Cathay Pacific and Dragonair passenger aircraft.
The company sold its 15% shareholding in Hong Kong Aircraft Engineering Company (HAECO) to Swire
Pacific.
Cathay Pacific and its oneworld partner Mexicana Airlines signed a code-share agreement.
Cathay Pacific selected Iberia Maintenance (Iberia) of Spain to repair and maintain Cathay Pacific's 49
CFM56-5C4 engines on 11 Airbus A340-300.
Cathay Pacific sold 10% stake in HACTL Investment Holdings to Jardine Matheson, The Wharf
(Holdings), Mosgen, Hutchison Port Holdings, and China National Aviation Corporation for HK$640
million.
Air China and Cathay Pacific established a cargo airline joint venture.
Swire Pacific purchased 12.5% of the shares in Hong Kong Aircraft Engineering (HAECO) of Cathay
Pacific.
Cathay Pacific and Finnair, its oneworld alliance partner, started code-share flights between Hong Kong
and Brisbane in Australia.
The company announced its latest measure to enhance connectivity between Hong Kong International
Airport (HKIA) and the Pearl River Delta (PRD) region with a new service that allowed passengers to
check in for the flights from downtown Shenzhen.
The company launched its latest cargo product 'Pharma LIFT' targeted specifically at the needs of the
pharmaceutical industry.
Cathay Pacific signed an agreement for electronic data interchange with DHL Global Forwarding. The
agreement was based on the e-freight model developed by the International Air Transport Association
(IATA) for agreements on data exchange.
Cathay Pacific moved its operations to the new Terminal 2 at Shanghai Pudong International Airport.
A 20-year franchise agreement was signed between Cathay Pacific Services (CPSL), a wholly owned
subsidiary of Cathay Pacific, and Airport Authority of Hong Kong (AAHK) for a common use cargo
terminal.
The company added three South African destinations to its network under a new code-share arrangement
with British Airways Comair, a franchisee of the British carrier operating in South Africa.
Air China acquired a 17.5% stake in Cathay Pacific, and Cathay Pacific doubled its shareholding in Air
China to 20%.
Cathay Pacific, Swire Pacific, Air China, CNAC, and CITIC Pacific changed the shareholding structure of
Cathay Pacific, Dragonair, and Air China. Under this agreement, Dragonair, a Hong Kong airline serving
25 destinations across Asia, became a wholly owned subsidiary of Cathay Pacific.
The company commenced its services to Xiamen and resumed services to Beijing after a break of 13
years. The company also expanded its fleet size and expanded its flight services to Europe.
Cathay Pacific signed a code share agreement with Aeroflot (a Russian national airline) and Iberia
(Spain's national carrier).
The company extended its code sharing service to the US with its oneworld alliance partner, American
Airlines.
Cathay Pacific formed a code sharing agreement with American Airlines, and expanded its code sharing
agreement with British Airways.
The company completed its new business class installation, on its fleet of Boeing and Airbus aircrafts.
The new business class features an entirely redesigned cabin with new seats, subtle mood lighting, and a
bar for passengers.
Cathay Pacific and DHL signed a joint agreement, whereby DHL acquired a 30% stake in Cathay Pacific's
formerly wholly-owned subsidiary, Air Hong Kong, to form an express cargo joint venture.
Cathay Pacific installed the global internet network infrastructure provided by aviation telecommunications
company, SITA.
The company signed a code sharing agreement with British Airways, Ansett New Zealand, Malaysia
Airlines, and Turkish Airlines.
The company founded 'oneworld', whereby the founding companies (American Airlines, British Airways,
Canadian Airlines, Cathay Pacific Airways, and Qantas Airways) integrated frequent flyer programs and
airport lounge access and established many other passenger benefits across their global systems.
Cathay Pacific completed the construction of its headquarters, Cathay Pacific City, at Hong Kong
International Airport.
The company expanded its international network to include London, Brisbane, Frankfurt, Vancouver,
Amsterdam, Rome, San Francisco, Paris, Zurich, and Manchester.
The company initiated international services to Osaka, Fukuoka, and Nagoya in Japan.
Butterfiled & Swire, a Hong Kong based trading company, purchased a 45% stake in Cathay Pacific.
Roy C. Farrell and Sydney H de Kantzow founded Cathay Pacific Airways Limited (Cathay Pacific or 'the
company') in Hong Kong.
Key Employees
KEY EMPLOYEES
John Slosar
Board:Executive Board
Job Title:Chairman
Since:2014
Age:60
Mr. Slosar has been the Chairman at Cathay Pacific Airways Limited (Cathay Pacific or 'the company')
since 2014. He has been a Director at the company since 2007. Mr. Robert is also the Chairman at John
Swire & Sons (H.K.) Limited, Swire Pacific Limited, Swire Properties Limited, and Hong Kong Aircraft
Engineering Company Limited. He was appointed the Chief Operating Officer in 2007 and the Chief
Executive Officer in 2011. Mr. Robert joined the Swire group in 1980 and worked with the group in Hong
Kong, the US, and Thailand.
Rupert Hogg
Board:Executive Board
Job Title:Chief Executive Officer, Director
Since:2017
Age:54
Mr. Rupert Hogg been serving as the Chief Executive Officer of the company since 2017. Prior to this, Mr.
Hogg served as a Director and the Chief Operating Officer at Cathay Pacific from 2014 to 2017. He is
also the Chairman at AHK Air Hong Kong Limited and a Director at Hong Kong Dragon Airlines Limited.
Mr. Trower was appointed the Director of Cargo in 2008 and the Director of Sales and Marketing in 2010.
He joined the Swire group in 1986 and worked with the group in Hong Kong, Southeast Asia, Australia,
and the UK.
Martin Murray
Board:Executive Board
Job Title:Chief Financial Officer, Director
Since:2017
Age:50
Mr. James was appointed as the Chief Financial Officer and Director at Cathay Pacific and was previously
the Finance Director at the company. He is also a Director at Hong Kong Dragon Airlines Limited. Mr.
James was previously the Deputy Finance Director at Swire Pacific Limited. He joined the Swire group in
1995 and worked with the group in Hong Kong, the US, Singapore, and Australia.
Board:Executive Board
Job Title:Director
Since:2015
Age:57
Mr. Wah has been the Executive Director at Cathay Pacific since 2015. He is also the Chief Executive
Officer at Cathay Dragon. In addition to this, Mr. Wah oversees the business and operations of a number
of Cathay Pacific’s subsidiaries, including Cathay Pacific Services Limited, Vogue Laundry Service
Limited, Hong Kong Airport Services Limited and Shanghai International Airport Services Company
Limited.
Cai, Jianjiang
Mr. Jianjiang has been the Deputy Chairman at Cathay Pacific since 2014. He has also been a Director at
the company since 2009. Mr. Jianjiang is the General Manager of China National Aviation Holding
Company and the Chairman at Air China Limited.
Song, Zhiyong
Mr. Zhiyong has been a Director at Cathay Pacific since 2014. He is also the President at Air China
Limited.
Mr. Merlin Bingham has been a Director at Cathay Pacific since 2010. He is also a Director and
shareholder of John Swire & Sons Limited and a Director at Swire Pacific Limited, Swire Properties
Limited, and Hong Kong Aircraft Engineering Company Limited. Mr. Merlin joined the Swire group in 1997
and worked with the group in Hong Kong, Australia, Mainland China, and London.
Mr. Compton has been a Director at Cathay Pacific since 2015. He is also a Director and shareholder of
John Swire & Sons Limited and a Director at Swire Pacific Limited. Mr. Compton joined the Swire group in
2003 and worked with the group in Hong Kong, Singapore, Mainland China, Sri Lanka and London.
Zhao, Xiaohang
Mr. Xiaohang has been a Director at Cathay Pacific since 2011. He is also the Vice President at Air China
Limited.
Board:Senior Management
Job Title:Director-Sales and Marketing
Since:2014
Age:52
Mr. Dane has been the Director of Sales and Marketing at Cathay Pacific since 2014. His previous
position was the General Manager of China. Mr. Dane joined Cathay Pacific as a management trainee in
1986 and worked in a number of managerial positions in Hong Kong and overseas.
Board:Senior Management
Job Title:Director-Service Delivery
Since:2014
Age:47
Mr. William has been the Director of Service Delivery at Cathay Pacific since 2014. He joined the
company in 1991. He held a number of key positions within the airline, in Hong Kong and overseas,
including the General Manager of Inflight Services; the General Manager of Marketing, Loyalty
Programmes and CRM; and the General Manager of Japan.
Tom Owen
Board:Senior Management
Job Title:Director-People
Since:2015
Age:48
Mr. William has been the Director of People at Cathay Pacific since 2015. His previous position was a
Senior Vice President of Americas. Mr. William joined Cathay Pacific in 1995 from the British Army. He
has since held a number of senior leadership positions within the airline in both Hong Kong and overseas,
and from 2011 to 2012 worked as the Chief Operating Officer of Logistics for the Swire group’s
Steamships Trading Company Ltd in Papua New Guinea.
Board:Senior Management
Job Title:Director-Flight Operations
Since:2015
Age:48
Ms. Louise has been the Director of Flight Operations at Cathay Pacific since 2015. Her previous post
was the General Manager of Aircrew in Cathay Pacific’s Flight Operations Department. Ms. Louise joined
the airline in 1990 and held a wide range of managerial positions in Hong Kong and overseas.
Simon Large
Board:Senior Management
Job Title:Director-Cargo
Since:2015
Age:47
Mr. Simon Large has been the Director of Cargo at Cathay Pacific since 2015. His previous position was
the General Manager of Marketing, Loyalty Programmes and CRM. Mr. Large joined the Swire group in
1991 and in addition to working at Cathay Pacific held senior positions with Hong Kong Air Cargo
Terminals Ltd and tea grower/importer Finlays.
Arnold Cheng
Board:Senior Management
Job Title:Director-Corporate Affairs
Since:2016
Mr. Cheng has been the Director of Corporate Affairs at Cathay Pacific since July 2016. He joined the
company in 1992 and held a variety of management roles in both Hong Kong and overseas. Mr. Cheng’s
previous senior positions include the General Manager of Sales, PRD and Hong Kong, and General
Manager of International Affairs.
Paul Loo
Board:Senior Management
Job Title:Chief Customer and Commercial Officer
Since:2017
Age:48
Mr. Paul Loo been serving as the Chief Customer and Commercial Officer of the company since 2017.
Prior to this, Mr. Loo served as the Director Corporate Development & IT of the company and has been
associated with Cathay Pacific since 1991.
Greg Hughes
Board:Senior Management
Job Title:Chief Operations and Service Delivery Officer
Since:2017
Mr. Greg Hughes been serving as the Chief Operations and Service Delivery Officer of the company
since 2017. Prior to this, Mr. Hughes served as Group Director Components & Engine Services of Hong
Kong Aircraft Engineering Company Limited.
Services:
Airline Business:
Non-airline Business:
Catering Services
Ground Handling Services
Aircraft Ramp Handling Services
Cargo Terminal Operations
Cathay Pacific
Cathay Pacific Freighter
Cathay Dragon
Air Hong Kong
SWOT Analysis
SWOT ANALYSIS
Cathay Pacific Airways Limited (Cathay Pacific) is one of the leading international airlines with over 70
years of operational history. Its continuous investments in acquiring new aircrafts to expand its fleet
complement its business expansion plans in other countries through increased routes and frequency.
With the increasing tourism in the region and world, the company’s current investments will likely to
generate higher returns in coming years. However, due to overcapacity and stiff competition in the airline
market, the company continues to facing operating parameters like revenue, load factor and yield.
Strength Weakness
Strength
Cathay Group has a wide-spread operational network and strong fleet operations. As on 31 December,
2016, the group’s total fleet size was of 202 aircrafts, of which 146 belonged to Cathay Pacific, 43 to
Cathay Dragon and 13 aircrafts controlled by Air Hong Kong. The company offers scheduled passenger
and cargo services to 181 destinations in 43 countries and territories. Cathay Dragon is a wholly-owned
subsidiary of Cathay Pacific, which has recently been re-branded as Cathay Dragonair in November,
2016. Cathay Dragon air scheduled passenger and cargo services to 53 destinations in China and in
other parts of Asia. Also, the combined passenger capacity of Cathay Pacific and Cathay Dragon has
also increased by 2.4% in 2016 compared to 2015. Air Hong Kong in which Cathay Pacific owns 60% is
the only all-cargo airline in HK. Cathay Pacific also owns 18.13% of Air China Limited (Air China), which is
a major passenger, cargo and other airline related services in Mainland China.
Cathay Pacific has geographically diversified operations. The company has balanced revenue mix in
terms of revenue generated from various geographical locations. For instance, in FY2016, the company
generated revenues from six geographies, including North Asia; India, the Middle East, Pakistan and Sri
Lanka; Southwest Pacific and South Africa; Southeast Asia; Europe and North America. The company
garnered maximum share of revenues 50.6% from North Asia, which include its operation in its home
country Hong Kong, China, Japan Korea and Taiwan and other regions contributing significantly to the
top line. This less dependence on single region makes the country better positioned in the market against
all its peers.
Cathay Pacific has completed its seven decades of operations in 2016 and was ranked first in 2016
among the world’s largest airlines by the Jet Airliner Crash Data Evaluation Centre in terms of safety.
Cathay Pacific was voted Best North Asian Airline at the 27th Annual TTG Travel Awards in 2016. In
2016, the first class lounge at The Pier in Hong Kong was named Best First Class Airline Lounge in the
Skytrax World Airline Awards. Cathay Pacific also won the award for World’s Best Airline Cabin
Cleanliness. The business class lounge at The Pier in Hong Kong was named Best Airport Lounge at the
Monocle Travel Top 50 Awards. Cathay Pacific service teams and individual staff members won honours
at the Inflight Sales Person of the Year Awards and the Customer Service Excellence Awards organised
by the Hong Kong Association for Customer Service Excellence. In 2016, Cathay Pacific won Best
Presented First Class Wine List at the Business Traveller Cellars in the Sky 2015 Awards.
Weakness
Cathay Group’s performance on several operating parameters like revenue, yield and load factor was not
encouraging despite increase in the capacity and introduction of new routes by the group. For instance,
its total revenue declined 9.4% y-o-y from HK$102,342 in 2015 to HK$92,751 in 2016. The load factor,
which is a measure of capacity utilization decreased by 1.2% to 84.5% and passenger yield declined
9.2% to HK$54.1 cents, reflecting overcapacity in the market, a decline in premium class demand and
weak foreign currencies. Also, despite global fall in oil prices, costs incurred on jet fuel increased,
primarily due to hedging measures taken by the company when fuel prices were high. Moreover, non-fuel
costs per available tonne km were also increased during the preceding year, mainly due to staff costs,
landing and parking fees and aircraft maintenance costs which increased at faster rate than capacity.
Opportunity
With the increasing tourism and business travel the growth of civil aviation industry is expected to be
strong. For instance, as per in-house reports, globally the number of air passengers are estimated to
increase at a CAGR of 4.6% over 2017-21 from 3,622.3 million in 2017 to reach 4,335.7 million by 2021
while demand for air transport is expected to increase at 1.3% CAGR from 174,683.4 million ton-km in
2017 to reach 184,018.2 million ton-km in 2021. Similarly in the Asia-pacific region, number of air
passengers are estimated to increase at a CAGR of 6.1% over 2017-21 and air transport/freight to
increase at 1.7% over the same period of forecasting. The robust growth of the industry offers immense
opportunities for the company.
Cathay Pacific in past few years has made several strategic decisions and ended some of its previous
partnerships while extended or started new ones to expand its business. In January 2017, it entered into
a codeshare and frequent flyer programme agreement with Air Canada. Moreover, in May 2016, Cathay
Pacific signed a joint business agreement, which came into effect in the first quarter of 2017, with
Lufthansa Cargo AG in relation to cargo routes between Hong Kong and Europe. In October, 2016 the
group has signed a codeshare agreement with LATAM Airlines Brazil. In August 2016, Cathay Pacific and
Cathay Dragon entered into an air plus rail arrangement with SNCB Railway in Belgium on train services
between Amsterdam and Brussels, and between Amsterdam and Antwerp. It has stopped flying to Doha
since February, 2016, but still offers codeshare services with Qatar Airways on the route. These strategic
decisions likely to help the company in coming years in the wake of increasing competition in the aviation
market in the region.
The capacity of Cathay group increased by 2.4% in 2016 with the introduction of new routes and
increased frequency on existing routes. For instance, in 2016, Cathay Pacific introduced passenger
services to Madrid and London Gatwick and has expanded its services in Gatwick from four flights per
week to daily and Manchester service from four to five flights per week in June 2017. The airline also
seeks to gradually expand its services and increase the frequency on other locations like Christchurch,
Cairns and Brisbane in Oceania, Tel Aviv in Israel and Barcelona in Spain. The expansion strategy of the
business is in the line of growing civil aviation and tourism industries and the airline seeks to capitalize on
the opportunities offered by the growing market in the region and globally.
Tourism has become a driving force for economies across globe and governments are spending fortune
to promote inbound and outbound tourism. As per in-house reports, global tourism expenditure increased
at a CAGR of 2.0% from US$5.1 trillion in 2012 to reach US$5.5 trillion in 2016 and is estimated to
increase further at a CAGR of 7.2% during 2017-21 and reach US$7.7 trillion by 2021. The increasing
expenditure will drive the growth of civil aviation sector and companies like Cathay Pacific. Region wise,
Asia-pacific countries spent US$1.9 trillion in 2016 which is estimated to increase at a CAGR of 10.7%
during 2017-21.
Threat
Intense competition
Cathay pacific is one of the leading airlines in Asia-pacific region and competes with global giants like
Singapore Airlines, Qantas Airways, Malaysian Airlines and Japan Airlines among others. To gain the
market share these airlines are increasing their capacity and introducing low-cost carriers to meet the
rising demand coming from tourism. This increasing competition and overcapacity in Asia has had an
adverse impact on the Cathay’s operations. Consequently, the company had to stop its operations in
Doha in Qatar and in Southwest Pacific due to already available direct flights between Mainland China
and Australia. In Europe too, increase in capacity by Middle Eastern carriers has affected the company’s
yield. Cathay’s North America operations were also affected and its revenue from US declined in 2016,
mainly because passenger numbers did not increase as much as capacity and also competition was
intensified due to the direct flights introduced by Mainland China carriers.
The airline industry is highly regulated and operating airlines and carriers are subject to extensive
regulatory and legal compliance requirements that at times result in significant costs. Cathay Pacific has
operations in many parts of the world and operates in a highly regulated environment. Therefore, it is
important for a company like Cathay Pacific to adhere to all the guidelines with full compliance with the
regulators. Non-compliance with these laws, regulations, and restrictions could expose the company to
fines, penalties, suspension, or debarment, which could have a material adverse effect. For instance, in
March 2017, the European Commission imposed a fine of HK$ 476.12 million on Cathay Pacific and
along with other 10 carriers including British Airways and Air France with similar level of charges for
breaching Europe’s competition Law. Such kind of penalties not only affects the top line of the company
but also tarnish its image in the eyes of a shareholder.
Apart from fierce competition faced by Cathay Pacific, several economic factors also did not support the
growth of the company. For instance, HK dollar got appreciated against other currencies which made
Hong Kong an expensive destination and caused revenues earned in other currencies to be reduced on
conversion into Hong Kong dollars. Also, tepid economic growth in China affected inbound tourism in the
country. Not only few visitors flew into the country from European countries due to weak Euro and
sterling, outbound tourism was also affected in countries like Japan, where Yen is pegged higher than HK
dollar. In addition, advantage gained by the company in terms of reduced costs due to dipping fuel prices
was offset by its fuel hedging policy, which it took when prices of fuels were higher.
Top Competitors
TOP COMPETITORS
The following companies are the major competitors of Cathay Pacific Airways Limited
Company View
COMPANY VIEW
A statement made by John Slosar, the Chairman at Cathay Pacific Airways Limited, is given below. The
statement has been taken from the company’s Annual Report for FY2016.
The operating environment for our airlines was difficult in 2016, with a number of factors adversely
affecting their performance. Intense and increasing competition with other airlines was the most
important. Other airlines significantly increased capacity. There were more direct flights between
Mainland China and international destinations. Competition from low cost carriers increased.
Overcapacity in the market was a particular competitive problem for our cargo business. Three economic
factors were also important, the reduced rate of economic growth in Mainland China, a reduction in the
number of visitors to Hong Kong and the strength of the Hong Kong dollar. Hong Kong dollar strength
made Hong Kong an expensive destination and caused revenues earned in other currencies to be
reduced on conversion into Hong Kong dollars. All these factors put severe competitive pressure on
yields. We benefited from low fuel prices, but the benefit was reduced by fuel hedging losses, largely
incurred on hedges put in place when the fuel price was much higher than today. The contribution from
subsidiary and associated companies was satisfactory.
The Group’s passenger revenue in 2016 was HK$66,926 million, a decrease of 8.4% from 2015. Capacity
increased by 2.4%, reflecting the introduction of new routes and increased frequencies on other routes.
The load factor decreased by 1.2 percentage points, to 84.5%, Yield, which was under intense pressure
throughout the year, fell by 9.2% to HK54.1 cents, reflecting overcapacity in the market, a decline in
premium class demand and weak foreign currencies.
The Group’s cargo revenue in 2016 was HK$20,063 million, a decrease of 13.2% compared to the
previous year. The cargo capacity of Cathay Pacific and Cathay Dragon increased by 0.6% and the load
factor increased by 0.2 percentage points, to 64.4%. Tonnage carried increased by 3.1%. The market
was very weak in the first quarter. Tonnage recovered from the second quarter, becoming seasonally
strong in the fourth quarter. Yield fell by 16.3% to HK$1.59, reflecting strong competition, overcapacity
and the suspension of Hong Kong fuel surcharges. Demand on European routes was weak. Demand on
transpacific routes grew slightly in the second half of the year. Freighter services to Portland and
Brisbane West Wellcamp were introduced. We managed freighter capacity in line with demand and
carried a higher proportion of cargo in the bellies of our passenger aircraft.
Total fuel costs for Cathay Pacific and Cathay Dragon (before the effect of fuel hedging) decreased by
HK$4,906 million (or 20.4%) compared with 2015. Fuel is still the Group’s most significant cost,
accounting for 29.6% of our total operating costs in 2016 (compared to 34.0% in 2015). Fuel hedging
losses reduced the benefit of low fuel costs. After taking hedging losses into account, the Group’s fuel
costs decreased by HK$5,015 million (or 15.2%) compared to 2015.
There was a 2.9% increase in non-fuel costs per available tonne kilometre. Staff costs, landing and
parking fees, and aircraft maintenance costs increased at a faster rate than capacity.
Congestion at Hong Kong International Airport and air traffic control constraints in the Greater China
region continued to impose costs on the Group. We are doing more to improve the reliability of our
operations. This was reflected in a 7.4 percentage points improvement in on-time performance.
In response to weak revenues, we have undertaken a critical review of our business. In the short term, we
are implementing measures designed to improve revenues and reduce costs. The longer term strategy
which is being developed in response to the review is designed to improve performance over a three year
period.
In 2016, Cathay Pacific introduced passenger services to Madrid (in June) and London Gatwick (in
September). Both services have been well received. We will increase the frequency of our Gatwick and
Manchester services in June 2017. Frequencies on some other routes were increased in 2016. Cathay
Pacific will introduce services to Tel Aviv in March 2017, to Barcelona in July 2017 and to Christchurch in
December 2017. Cathay Pacific stopped flying to Doha in February 2016, but still offers codeshare
services with Qatar Airways on this route. Cathay Dragon increased frequencies on its Phnom Penh,
Wenzhou and Wuhan routes and reduced frequencies on its Clark and Kota Kinabalu routes. Cathay
Dragon stopped flying to Hiroshima and stopped the tagged flight between Kathmandu and Dhaka,
providing direct services to both destinations instead.
In 2016, we took delivery of 10 Airbus A350-900 aircraft. These fuel efficient and technologically
advanced long-haul aircraft are being used on our Auckland, Düsseldorf, London Gatwick, Paris and
Rome routes. We retired our last three Boeing 747-400 passenger aircraft and three Airbus A340- 300
aircraft during the year. One Airbus A340-300 aircraft was retired in January 2017 and the remaining
three such aircraft will be retired later in 2017. We took delivery of our final Boeing 747-8F freighter in
August.
The new Airbus A350-900 aircraft have our latest cabins, seats and entertainment systems and inflight
connectivity for passengers’ mobile devices. We opened a new lounge in Vancouver in May 2016,
reopened the business class lounge at The Pier in Hong Kong in June 2016, and reopened our first and
business class lounges at London Heathrow in December 2016. The G16 lounge in Hong Kong closed for
renovations in July 2016 and will reopen in the second quarter of 2017.
In November 2016, Dragonair was rebranded as Cathay Dragon, bringing the brands of our two airlines
into closer alignment. The first aircraft featuring the Cathay Dragon livery went into service in April 2016.
Prospects
We expect the operating environment in 2017 to remain challenging. Strong competition from other
airlines and the adverse effect of the strength of the Hong Kong dollar are expected to continue to put
pressure on yield. The cargo market got off to a good start, but overcapacity is expected to persist.
We expect to continue to benefit in 2017 from the fact that fuel prices are much lower than their previous
high levels, but to a lesser extent (because of some increase in oil prices in recent months) than in 2016.
We also expect to incur further fuel hedging losses in 2017, but these should be less than in 2016. Our
subsidiaries and associates are expected to continue to perform satisfactorily.
Despite the challenges with which we are faced, we still expect our business to grow in the long-term. Air
traffic to, from and within the Asia-Pacific region is expected to grow strongly. We intend to benefit from
this growth by increasing our passenger capacity by 4-5% per annum, at least until the third runway at
Hong Kong International Airport is open. We will continue to introduce new destinations and to increase
frequencies on our most popular routes. We are buying new and more fuel efficient aircraft. This will
increase productivity and reduce costs.
We are starting on a three year programme of corporate transformation with the intention of achieving
returns above the cost of capital. The goal is to become a more agile and competitive organisation in
order to take advantage of changing market trends and customer preferences.
We will continue to make investments designed to strengthen our brand and what we offer to our
customers. We aim to deliver better services and to do so more effectively through the use of data
analytics and mobile technology. Doing this will increase operational efficiency and help us to meet our
customers’ needs better. We are reviewing our revenue management, distribution and pricing practices.
We intend to increase ancillary revenue.
Just as important as improving revenues is reducing costs. We are working on operational changes
intended to improve the reliability of our schedules. This will reduce the costs of disruption and will also
enable us to use our assets more efficiently and to improve our on-time performance. Our organisation
will become leaner. This will improve productivity and reduce costs and will also enable us to make
decisions more quickly. Our aim is to reduce our unit costs excluding fuel over the next three years.
The objective of the Cathay Pacific Group is to provide sustainable growth in shareholder value over the
long term. We are confident of longer-term success. We celebrated our 70th anniversary in 2016 and our
commitment to Hong Kong and its people remains unwavering.
Head Office
Cnr William Nicol Drive & Lesley Road Area B Terminal 3 Departures
Fourways 2191 Heathrow Airport
ZAF GBR
Phone:27 11 394 0905 Phone:44 20 8834 8893
Fax:27 11 700 8990 Fax:44 20 8741 5477
Cathay Pacific Mexico Cathay Pacific Services Limited
Leibnitz number 34 Primer Piso 6/F, Office Building
Col. Nueva Anzures11590 Cathay Pacific Cargo Terminal, 3 Chun Wan Road
Mexico D.F Hong Kong International Airport, Lantau
MEX HKG
Phone:52 55 5629 0303 Phone:852 2767 9000
Hong Kong Airport Services Limited Hong Kong Dragon Airlines Ltd
4/F, South Tower E-30-3 Signature Office
Cathay Pacific City, 8 Scenic Road Block E Lot 30 3rd Floor
Hong Kong International Airport, Lantau KK Times Square Off Coastal Highway
HKG 88100 Kota Kinabalu
Sabah
MYS
Phone:60 88 254 733
http://www.dragonair.com
Vogue Laundry Service Limited
9/F, East Asia Industrial Building
2 Ho Tin Street, Tuen Mun, New Territories
HKG
John Carpenter House, John Carpenter Street, London, United Kingdom, EC4Y 0AN
T: +44 (0) 203 377 3042 | F: +44 (0) 870 134 4371 | E: [email protected] | W: www.marketline.com
Copyright of Cathay Pacific Airways Limited MarketLine Company Profile is the property of
MarketLine, a Progressive Digital Media business and its content may not be copied or
emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written
permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use.