Air New Zealand Raises Forecast Over Continued Strong Travel Demand

Air New Zealand is upgrading its earnings guidance for the first half of the financial year (FY) 2023 and now expects earnings before other significant items and taxation to be in the range of NZ$295-325 million ($187-206 million).

This compares to the previous guidance range of NZ$200-275 million provided on 21 September, it says in a filing to the New Zealand's Exchange.

The airline attributes the upgrade to "continued strong travel demand across the domestic and international networks, as well as a recent decline in jet fuel prices."

It also assumes that it will fly approximately 75% of pre-Covid capacity levels across the entire network in December, with domestic network running at just under 100%, short haul at about 85% and international at around 70%.

Air New Zealand says it is focussed on ensuring operational reliability while also adding capacity to "alleviate" the pressure.

Since February, the airline has hired over 2,200 employees and welcomed two new Airbus A321neos into the fleet.

The carrier adds that it is not providing full-year guidance at this time as ongoing fuel price volatility, global recessionary risks, continued inflationary pressures and increased costs may slow its recovery and significantly impact earnings.