The all-cargo carrier generated a net result of US$20.2 million vs US$211 million a year before. Main external reasons for the financial shortfalls in 2019 were volatile market conditions
caused by ongoing tariff conflicts, the Brexit uncertainty, and the general downturn in the industry, says the company. This downward spiral was magnified by persistent overcapacity in aviation
and poor cargo yields.

Despite these rather unfavorable circumstances causing earnings to go sharply south, Luxembourg’s flag carrier managed to outperform the industry average by generating a positive result, the
carrier surmises, pointing to its 2019 performance chronology. Looking in the rear-view mirror, CV speaks of a “solid start to the year,” followed by a rather weak transport demand both in summer
and fall, and a somewhat short peak season in the final quarter. This volatility, showing more downs than ups, influenced by a multitude of factors, translated into a sharp decrease in
profitability in a y-o-y comparison, CV’s 2019 summary reads.

Revenues down too, but not dramatically
So, was it a good, normal, or poor year? Judged from today’s pandemic-influenced perspective, Cargolux achieved still satisfactory annual results, no more, no less. This accounts specifically for
revenues that fell from US$2.63 billion generated in 2018 to US$2.25 billion last fiscal year, influenced by lower yields and a 2.3% decrease in load factor, averaging 65.7%. Tonnage went down
4.2%, slightly exceeding 1 million.

Network grew last year
On the credit side of 2019, is the network expansion, with Jakarta and Santiago de Chile added to the route map. Further to this, Budapest flights were upped from formerly 3 to 6 and a new
transpacific frequency from Zhengzhou (CGO) to Los Angeles via Xiamen was introduced.
Last December, CV operated 30 freighters, among them sixteen Boeing 747-400F and fourteen Boeing 747-8F. No changes since then.
Asked about their 2020 outlook, the company did not respond.

Heiner Siegmund

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