Singapore Airlines posts $212 million loss for the full year

The shutdown of international travel, and a fuel price hedging gamble, have put the pressure on Singapore's national carrier.

Singapore Airlines has posted a net loss of $212 million for the year ending on March 31, an almost 1 billion turnaround on the $683 million profit reported over the same period in 2018-19.

Stephen Barnes, senior vice president of finance, said the airline had been on track to deliver improved passenger-flown revenue over the first nine months of the year, but those gains were were "wiped out by the decline in the final quarter, resulting from global travel restrictions and border controls which led to a collapse in demand for air travel".

He also admitted that the Group had been in an "over-hedged" posution with respect to expected fuel consumption over the coming financial year (2020-21). 

"Net fuel cost increased, primarily due to fuel hedging losses in FY19/20," he said.

Also read: Aviation industry can pull through admist crisis: SIA

Chief Executive Officer Goh Choon Phong also outlined the company's vision for a restart of the bulk of SIA's operations, as well as the likely new challenges that the global aviation industry will face in the "Post-Covid" world.

The group has launched a "Restart Taskforce", with four workgroups planning around each of: Government regulation and new health requirements, licensing, certification, and manpower; supplly chain; and the end-to-end travel experience for passengers.

"This is an opportunity to strengthen our position as a global aviation leader," he said.

SIA shares fell 4.75% to $3.81 on Thursday ahead of the results announcement, and were trading at $3.84 at 1:00pm on Friday.