Vietnam Airlines lifts profit, targets 25 million passengers in 2020

HANOI - Vietnam Airlines has reported a strong business performance in 2019, despite what it describes as a challenging business landscape which saw a market slowdown, depreciation of key currencies, and limited existing infrastructure to meet increasing travel demand.

The Vietnam Airlines Group's estimated consolidated revenue for 2019 was VND101,188 billion (US$ 4.6 billion) up VND 2,200 billion (US$ 98.2 million) on 2018) with  profit before tax of nearly VND3,369 billion (US$ 145.2 million).

The parent company - Vietnam Airlines - reported estimated revenue of more than VND 75,000 billion (US$ 3.231 billion) and profit before tax of over VND 2,700 billion (US$117 million) - up 12% on-year.

The consolidated group tax contribution to Vietnam's State budget totalled VND 7,369 billion (US$ 318 million), up 10% from 2018, while that of the parent company itself was VND 2,573 billion (US$ 111 million)- up 43% YOY.

As a result, the airline saw a significant improvement in its financial indicators, with return on equity (ROE) of more than 16% and the debt-to-equity (D/E) ratio falling to 2.27.

In 2019, the Vietnam Airlines fleet reached 100 and the global network expanded to nearly 100 routes - with the addition of 22 new-generation aircraft, including the Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner, Airbus A350-900, and Airbus A321neo.

During 2019, VN operated 134,000 flights and carried 23 million passengers and nearly 346,000 tons of cargo. On-time performance (OTP) of 90% was 2% above target and higher than the global average. The airline plans to carry 25 million passengers in 2020. www.vietnamairlines.com