Turkish Airlines (THY) has announced its consolidated financial results for the financial year 2018. Accordingly, the national flag carrier's consolidated net profit for 2018 surged by 533 percent to TL 4 billion.

According to THY's 2018 consolidated financial statements and annual report published on the Public Disclosure Platform (KAP), the company performed better in comparison to the global aviation sector.

Accordingly, THY's total sales revenue reached TL 62.9 billion, while this figure, which increased by 58 percent compared to the previous year, stood at TL 39.8 billion in 2017.

With TL 6.2 billion in gross operating profit, THY also achieved TL 4 billion in consolidated net profit for the financial year 2018. The company's net profit for the period, which was at TL 639 million in 2017, saw a noteworthy increase of 533 percent last year.

In dollar terms, on the other hand, Turkish Airlines' sales revenue increased by 17.3 percent year-on-year to $12.9 billion in 2018. THY, with an operating profit of TL 1.2 billion, achieved a net profit of $753 million last year.

Turkish Airlines Vice President Media Relations Yahya Üstün also announced the results on his official Twitter account. "Turkey's national flag carrier posted 1.19 billion in gross operating profit last year. We have succeeded in raising passengers and cargo revenues. In the last quarter of last year, we generated $3 billion in revenue," he said. With this successful performance, he added, the annual sales revenues of Turkish Airlines rose by 17 percent and reached $12.9 billion.

Seat occupancy rate

rises to 81.9 pct in 2018

Last year, passenger demand rose by 8.9 percent, followed by a capacity increase of 5.2 percent and seat occupancy rate increase of 2.8 percent. In 2018, seat occupancy rate stood at 81.9 percent. The number of passengers carried by Turkish Airlines in 2018 surged by 9.5 percent compared to the same period of the previous year, reaching 75 million passengers. The number of international passengers increased by 9.6 percent.

The national flag carrier continued its success on the passenger side in cargo/mail transportation as well, maintaining its strong growth trend of over 10 years in the cargo market. The company increased its cargo/mail amount by 25 percent and cargo/mail revenue by 25 percent.

As of the end of 2018, the number of Turkish Airlines personnel climbed by 11 percent to 26,739.

2019 goals and expectations

According to the annual report, THY aims to carry a total of 80 million passengers in 2019, including 33 million domestic and 47 million international passengers. With an increase of 3 percent in Turkey, 11 percent in the Middle East, 6 percent in Europe, 8 percent in Asia-Far East, 7 percent in the United States and 15 percent in Africa, the company plans to reach around 195 billion in available seats per km by achieving a total growth of 7 to 8 percent. This year the seat occupancy rate is expected to be in the range of 81 to 82 percent.

THY foresees an increase of 8 to 9 percent in total fuel consumption this year. The average jet fuel cost, including the hedge, is expected to be around $715 per ton. The company aims to generate approximately $14.1 billion in sales revenue along with a 3 to 5 percent increase in unit costs excluding fuel. The consolidated EBITDAR (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization and rent costs) margin, on the other hand, is projected to be around 22 to 24 percent.