MacroAsia returns to profitability

MANILA, Philippines — Airline support service provider MacroAsia Corp. found its way back to profit in the first quarter, cashing in on the strong demand for in-flight catering and ground handling services.

In a regulatory filing, MacroAsia said that it booked a net income of P151.09 million in the first quarter, swinging from a net loss of P26.88 million a year ago.

MacroAsia grew its revenue by nearly thrice to P1.8 billion, fueled by the recovery of orders for in-flight catering and ground handling services.

During the period, the firm, owned by taipan Lucio Tan, tripled its earnings from in-flight catering to P902.68 million. The segment managed to account for half of the revenue pie after MacroAsia sold 5.5 million meals against last year’s 2.2 million meals.

Further, MacroAsia doubled its income from ground handling to P723.76 million. The firm said that on a yearly scale, the number of flights it handled jumped to a total of 44,056 buoyed by the resumption of international travel.

On the other hand, MacroAsia said that it doubled its expenses to P1.39 billion in the first quarter to serve the volume growth in its business segments.

For the rest of this year, the firm believes that it can sustain this level of performance, especially as the resurgence of air travel is projected to bolster its topline.

“Passenger loads and flight and flight frequencies of airlines are the two most important factors that affect the revenue levels of the group’s operating units that are involved in catering, ground handling and line maintenance,” MacroAsia said.

MacroAsia carries out cost-control measures to conserve cash and focuses spending on capacity expansion to meet the growing airport needs. In return, the firm expects to benefit from the rising volume of domestic and international flights now that border restrictions are lifted.

“Domestic travel volumes in and out of Manila have already reached pre-pandemic levels, while international travel volumes are still ramping up as more airlines increase their flight frequency. The group has been expanding its capacity to meet the airport requirements,” MacroAsia said.

MacroAsia controls a number of subsidiaries mostly engaged in airport services, such as in-flight catering, ground handling, fixed-based operations, as well as aviation training.

Likewise, it owns 49 percent of Lufthansa Technik Philippines that provides maintenance, repair and overhaul of aircraft through its hangar in Manila and facilities in provinces like Clark, Cebu, Kalibo and Davao.