Cathay Pacific Airways posted a 9.5 percent rise in full-year profit – driven by a strong passenger traffic recovery and robust ⁠cargo demand – and said it planned to lift capacity this year despite geopolitical volatility.

The airline also said fuel surcharge could go up soon as the conflict in the Middle East drove up global oil prices.

Net profit at Hong Kong's flagship carrier rose to HK$10.83 billion for the year ended December 31, beating analysts' estimates of around HK$10.05 billion and the HK$9.89 billion recorded in 2024.

Cathay chairman Patrick Healy said the ⁠airline aims to grow passenger capacity by around ⁠10 percent this year as it added frequencies and destinations to its network, which would also boost cargo capacity.

However, the ⁠airline faces headwinds from the ongoing Middle East conflict, which has disrupted global aviation operations, increased jet fuel costs and led some airlines to raise fares and boost fuel surcharges.

"We're seeing sudden and unexpected shifts in passenger and cargo flows, as well as jet fuel prices. Ongoing supply chain disruption and cost inflation continue to impact delivery of new aircraft, cabin products and parts," Healy told an online press briefing.

"However, we have built a strong foundation which has made Cathay more resilient, efficient and adaptable than ever before, and this has put us in the best possible position to withstand the current market turbulence."

Lavinia Lau, Cathay's chief customer and commercial officer, said she expects fuel surcharge to go up in the near term.

"Fuel surcharge is a mechanism which we use to hedge against some of the volatility in fuel prices... if we look at the jet fuel prices so far in March, we are seeing jet fuel [prices] almost doubled compared to the average in January to February," she said.

"As fuel surcharge is based on jet fuel as a reference point, we can expect that fuel surcharge will also go up because of the current unusual situation."

Revenue in 2025 climbed 11.9 percent to HK$116.8 billion, driven by a 15.8 percent surge in passenger revenue as Cathay began expanding its long-haul network to North America ⁠and Europe.

The carrier flew 28.9 million passengers during the year, a 26.5 percent increase from 2024, achieving an 85.2 percent load factor.

This marked Cathay's third consecutive annual profit following three years of losses over the pandemic, during which it made heavy layoffs.

Its budget arm, HK Express, sank further into the red with a full-year loss of HK$996 million before net finance charges and taxation, compared with a HK$204 million loss in 2024.

"The most prominent factor that adversely affected HK Express was the change in our travellers' preference in terms of destination, in particular Japan was affected for a few months in the middle of last year because of the earthquake rumour," Cathay's chief executive Ronald Lam said.

"The other factor was that HK Express launched 12 new destinations in 2025, but some of these new destinations will take time to mature and therefore may not be profitable immediately.

"But we are very confident about the long-term future of HK Express. If we look at our fundamentals – like aircraft utilisation, cost efficiency, on-time performance – all have been trending towards positive direction."

Cathay announced a second interim dividend of HK$0.64 per share and a full-year dividend of HK$0.84. (Additional reporting by Reuters)
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Last updated: 2026-03-11 HKT 19:29



Edited by Tony Sabine