A stable political environment and buoyant tourism underpinned by strong passenger traffic boosted Airports of Thailand’s (AoT) commercial performance in the six months to 31 March, the company revealed today.
Non-aeronautical revenues leapt by +26.76% to Bt5,821 million (US$165 million) in Q2 and by +22% to Bt10,804 million (US$305 million) in the half, AoT reported, with concession revenues rising by +21.38% in the latest quarter and by 20.18% in the half. Concessions account for around two-thirds of non-aeronautical income at AoT.
AoT said that the main reason for the sharp rise in commercial income “was an increase in the number of passengers and the rate of revenue sharing, especially revenue sharing from the duty free shops [run by King Power International Group -Ed]”, which increased by Bt568.05 million (US$16 million) in the half.
A breakdown of non-aeronautical revenues by category (above) and (below) the key impact of concession revenues on the business |
Passenger traffic across the AoT network of airports climbed by +12.75% year-on-year in the six-month period to 61.25 million.
AoT said in a statement: “The overall aviation industry of Thailand during October 2015 to March 2016 grew sharply compared to the same period last year because the domestic political situation is more stable and the government’s policy to stimulate the economy and encourage people to spend.
“In addition, the policy to stimulate tourism both domestically and internationally led to an increase in tourists, especially Chinese visitors, showing a significant impact on Thailand’s tourism industry.
“The expansion of low cost airlines, with their competitive pricing, increased new demand of air travel for middle-income groups. All of these were factors in the positive results for both the aviation industry and the overall domestic economy.”
Airports of Thailand’s key financial performance indicators in Q2 (above) and H1 (below) |
