- IAG revealed its operating profits climbed to €68m (£58.5m) in the first quarter
- The firm carried 26.4m passengers during the period, over 2m up year-on-year
International Airlines Group (IAG) earnings soared during the first three months of 2024 on the back of strong demand for leisure travel.
British Airways’ parent company, which also runs Iberia and Aer Lingus, posted an operating profit of €68million (£58.5million) for the first quarter, against €9million (£7.7million) during the same period last year.
Turnover increased by 9.2 per cent to €5.5billion as IAG benefited from the continued post-pandemic recovery in overseas holidays and the Easter bank holiday weekend falling earlier than usual.
Flying higher: British Airways’ parent company IAG, which also runs Iberia and Aer Lingus, revealed its operating profits climbed to €68million (£58.5million) in the first quarter
IAG carried 26.4 million passengers during the period, over 2 million more year-on-year, supported by rising traffic between major European cities, as well as to Latin America and the Caribbean.
Growth remained stymied by the Israel-Hamas war and tensions with Iran depressing travel to the Middle East.
However, the company’s passenger load factor – the percentage of seats filled by customers – rose by 1.6 percentage points to 83.1 per cent, while its total capacity expanded by 7 per cent to 76.7 million seats.
Meanwhile, fuel unit costs declined by around 5 per cent due to lower average fuel prices and the delivery of more efficient aircraft.
And net debts slumped by €2billion since last December to €7.4billion, which is also more than a third down on the €11.7billion it held in 2021.
Luis Gallego, chief executive of IAG, remarked: ‘Our transformation initiatives and increased demand, including over the Easter holidays, have delivered another very good set of results with improvements to both revenue and operating profit.
‘Our Group benefits from the strength of our core markets – North Atlantic, South Atlantic and intra-Europe – and the performance of our brands.’
IAG said it was ‘well-positioned’ for the summer season, having enjoyed a record third-quarter performance in 2023 thanks to high traffic on Atlantic routes and to leisure destinations across Europe.
In mid-April, EasyJet said it hoped to achieve another record summer despite the Middle East conflict and inflationary pressures across Europe.
Many consumers continue to prioritise foreign holidays amidst the cost-of-living crisis, with many just choosing cheaper destinations instead of staying at home.
Victoria Scholar, head of investment at Interactive Investor, said: ‘Clearly individuals and families are prioritising their summer holidays where they can, most likely at the expense of other discretionary spending.’
International Airlines Group shares were 1 per cent up at 184.6p on Friday morning, but remain far below their pre-pandemic levels.