SuperFerry cuts fares to VisMin to boost local tourism

Leading shipping company SuperFerry, owned by the Aboitiz family, further slashed its rates to select destinations in Visayas and Mindanao as part of efforts to help promote tourism in the country. Andrew Deyto, SuperFerry assistant vice president for sales and marketing, said the SuperFerry Sail Sale promo offers one rate starting at P799 going to Visayas, and one rate of P1,499 to Mindanao. These rates, he said, are inclusive of value-added tax and surcharge.

The selling period for the SuperFerry Sale promo is from July 15-21 for the August 1-31 sailing schedule. Deyto said the SuperFerry Sale will henceforth be a monthly promo. The Aboitiz Group’s transport and logistics businesses were earlier consolidated under Aboitiz Transport Corp. (ATSC) to enhance operational and funding efficiencies. Among the companies under ATSC are Aboitiz One Inc., Aboitiz Jebsen Bulk Transport Corp., Aboitiz Jebsen Manpower Solutions Inc., Jebsen Maritime Inc., and Jebsen Management Ltd. ATSC reported a 13 percent drop in its 2005 net income to P310.5 million, mainly due to higher interest expenses. Revenues, however, rose seven percent to P8.2 billion from P7.7 billion.

The company presently enjoys more than 20 percent of the total market share for the passage business and about 40 percent of freight. ATSC incurred a net loss of P126 million in the first quarter this year, 26.8 percent higher than the previous level’s P97 million. High fuel costs and an inability to pass on fully these cost increases meant lower operating margins for the transport business. Also, volumes in both passage and freight were lower versus last year’s first quarter due to a smaller fleet, stiffer competition and a weaker market, resulting in a 12 percent drop in revenue from the same period last year.