Auckland Airport’s (AIAL) international passenger traffic rose by 7.2% to 592,911, although its 40,970 additional international transit passenger numbers fell by -8.1%. Better news for AIAL’s new duty free retailers LTR/Aelia and ARI was that international arriving and departing traffic grew by 5.7% to 8.1m.

 

Airport management reports that passenger growth in June ‘occurred across all regions’, with a ‘particularly strong performance’ on North American routes (+15.4%).

 

It adds that growth in international passenger volumes was underpinned by robust demand across all regions, with passenger numbers increasing across the network.

 

The potentially good news trend for AIAL’s two new duty free operators of ARI and Aelia/LTR (the newly renamed Lagardère Travel Retail) is that in the year ended 30 June 2015, AIAL achieved strong growth in passenger volumes for the year ended 30 June 2015.

 

International passengers (excluding transit passengers) were up 5.7% to 8.1m on the prior year, while transit passengers grew by 6.7% to 493,796 and domestic passengers by 4.2% to 7.1m.

 

AIAL said: “The growth in non-resident visitor arrivals to Auckland accelerated for the year ended 30 June 2015, up 7.7% on the prior year. This compares to the 5.9% growth achieved for the year ended 30 June 2014.

 

 

“The largest increases came from China (+65,441, +28.8%), United States of America (+17,820, +10.6%) and Australia (+17,257, +2.3%). The growth has been driven by capacity increases across most regions, with the greatest capacity growth on the China, Japan and trans-Tasman routes.”

 

The leading arriving nationalities by country of last residence in the rolling year ending June 2015 (excluding New Zealanders) were notable, since none were in negative territory: Australia 776,350 (+2.3%); China 292,435 (+28.8%); US 186,257 (+10.6%); UK 161,545 (+0.5%); Japan 72,298 (+16.7%); South Korea 47,339 (+14.1%); India 45,755 (+33.0%); Singapore 28,859 (+3.6%); and Hong Kong 29,631 (+16.1%).

 

AIAL HOPING FOR +$3.2M IN 2016 EARNINGS….

Obviously AIAL will be hoping that the current positive international traffic trend continues if it is to meet its expectations – and those related to shareholders – that its two new duty free retailers will be able add an extra NZ$5m ($3.2m) in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation in fiscal year 2016.

 

Meanwhile, AIAL’s subsidiary of Queenstown Airport also saw its international passenger numbers up by 38.9% to 28,939 in June 2015, mainly thanks to capacity growth on the Sydney and Gold Coast routes.

 

AIAL added: “International aircraft landings grew 31% and domestic passenger volumes increased 5.2% [to 60,335-Ed]. Queenstown set a new milestone in June 2015, with more than one million domestic passengers passing through the airport in a year.

 

For the year ended 30 June 2015, Queenstown’s rolling 12-month international passenger total (excluding transit pax) was 397,927 (+29.0%), while the domestic total just passed the 1m-passenger level (+6.4%).