Cathay Pacific flags first-half loss of $1.3 billion as travel demand battered

Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific Airways burned through cash of $322 million to $386 million each month since February. (AFP file photo)

• Coronavirus pandemic has crushed travel demand

SYDNEY: Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific Airways expects a first-half net loss of $1.3 billion, including impairment charges on 16 planes, the airline said on Friday, as the coronavirus pandemic crushed travel demand.
Earlier, the airline had flagged a “substantial” first-half loss and that it had burned through cash of $322 million to $386 million each month since February.
The first-half loss estimate compares to a profit of $173 billion profit in the first half of 2019, before widespread anti-government protests and the virus withered demand.