Hong Kong International Airport 2010 profit up 42%

The airport had 51.5 million passenger trips, 4.2 million tonnes of cargo volume and 316,000 flight movements last year.

Hong Kong International Airport set new financial and operational records in the financial year ending March 31, seeing a profit increase of 41.9%.

The Airport Authority announced on Wednesday revenue rose 17.4% to $10.583 billion, while the return on equity increased to 11.1% from the 7.8% recorded in the previous term.

The authority declared a final dividend of $3.1 billion to the Government, according to a HKIA report.

Passenger flow, cargo volume and flight movements surged in the past year, reaching 51.5 million passenger trips, 4.2 million tonnes and 316,000 movements, representing strong year-on-year growth of 9.7%, 16.5% and 12.9%.

Chief Executive Officer Stanley Hui said: “We achieved remarkable results in fiscal 2010-11 year and set records for all performance indicators. This was largely buoyed by sustained economic growth on the Mainland and in Hong Kong, a rebound in global trade and increased demand for aviation services.

“In view of the sustained economic expansion of the Mainland and global economies, we believe air traffic will continue to grow, albeit at a slower pace. Earnings growth in the near term is also expected to be tempered by slower traffic growth and the higher base that was created in the fiscal 2010-11 year.”