Emirates Group says first-half profit drops 66%
DUBAI: The UAE’s Emirates Group on Thursday said its profits in the first half of the financial year fell 66 percent year-on-year, as the regional war and high fuel costs hit aviation. Half-year profit after tax stood at 3.6 billion AED ($1 billion), the group said in a statement. The Dubai-based group, which owns the largest airline in the Middle East, said its Emirates airline saw half-year…
The UAE’s Emirates Group reported a sharp 66 percent drop in first-half profits to 3.6 billion AED ($1 billion), as the regional war and rising fuel costs strained its aviation operations. Emirates airline, the Middle East’s largest carrier, saw a 68 percent decline in half-year profit before tax to AED 3.7 billion, driven by high fuel prices.
The group’s overall revenues fell 12 percent to 66.2 billion AED, boosted by a strong performance in its cargo division. Passenger numbers dropped 22 percent between April and September 2026, down to 21.8 million passengers. Despite these headwinds, the airline pledged to maintain its flight schedule, describing the challenges as "unprecedented" and praising its people’s resilience.
Chairman and CEO Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum highlighted the group’s ability to tap strong cash reserves to cover pre-delivery aircraft payments and debt servicing. To shore up customer confidence, Emirates introduced an industry-first comprehensive travel insurance policy, free date changes, and generous refunds, unbound by government travel advisories.
Additionally, the company broke ground on a $5.1 billion engineering and maintenance facility in Dubai, with completion slated for the mid-2030s.
Written by urgent.news from Business Recorder's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
