Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd reported a net loss of $509.3 million for the second quarter of this year, as the company benefits from relaxed Covid protocols and navigates through inflation and higher fuel costs. The company reported a reported a net loss of $1 billion in the last quarter.
Revenue was $1.2 billion, up from $4.4 million in the second quarter of 2021. Onboard revenue has risen over 30 percent from the same quarter in 2019. Load factor was 65 percent, up from 48 percent from in the last quarter.
Total cruise operating expenses rose year over year. Inflation and continued Covid-19-related costs including testing were major contributors. Fuel prices per metric ton rose to $836, up from the second quarter of $673 in 2021. The impact of the labor shortage has been limited to Norwegian Cruise’s U.S. operations, according to Norwegian Cruise President & CEO Frank Del Rio.
Looking ahead, Norwegian’s advance ticket sales balance rose $0.3 billion in the quarter to $2.5 billion, an all-time record high for the company. Sales for 2023 tickets are 40 percent higher than they were in 2018 for 2019 tickets, according to Del Rio.
Recent events are boosting the cruise line’s recovery in the months ahead. Del Rio cited President Joe Biden lifting the testing requirement for incoming travelers, the Center for Disease Control retiring its Covid outbreak tracking program for cruise ships and Norwegian Cruise’s recent protocol relaxation around vaccination and testing requirements. “Each one had a positive impact on booking,” he said. “Each of those events triggered an improvement in bookings.”
The company expects a net loss for the next quarter due to the effects of the Russia-Ukraine conflict and current macroeconomic conditions.
Tags: coronavirus recovery, cruise, earnings, norwegian cruise line