Banks are booming, travel is back and supply chain problems are easing, a series of financial results released today show.
Some of our biggest companies issued their half-year reports this morning revealing a mixed bag of performance.
At KiwiBank, profits are up 7%, with net profit after tax hitting $105 million. Lending growth boomed for the New Zealand-owned bank, with home lending growing 2.7 times faster than the market.
CEO Steve Jurkovich said “the improved performance was driven by competitive pricing across key home lending rates.”.
People were switching to the bank, he said. But business lending remained flat, as firms remained cautious due to the economic and geopolitical environment. All eyes are now on next week’s Official Cash Rate decision by the Reserve Bank.
After a tough few years, the Port of Auckland’s performance is rising. It’s declared a $20 million dividend to owners Auckland Council after recording a $0.4m rise in profit, taking it to $21.2 million.
The company says there’s been safety improvements, supply chain problems are easing and export and import volumes are increasing.
Cruise ship passengers are providing a boost, with a record number of arrivals thanks to the addition of the Disney and Virgin cruise lines.
Auckland Airport’s profits are also up thanks to travel returning with a bang. It’s made a profit of $118.7 million (after tax). A total of 9.3 million passengers transited through the airport.
Chairman Patrick Strange said global demand for travel saw the country’s biggest airport deliver a solid result.
He said there was “continued growth in our international network as airlines expanded capacity and new entrants joined the market".
"North America has been a particular highlight, where more people are now travelling to and from Auckland than ever before."
Storm clouds
But there’s a potential storm coming. It’s expecting the rate of growth to slow as the local aviation industry faces into economic headwinds.
Our national carrier is also warning of those headwinds. As expected, Air New Zealand announced a lower than predicted profit of $129 million. At the same time last year, it recorded one of its highest-ever results following the return of travel.
It’s warning it’s reviewing passenger fares and capacity as inflation hits.
Over at casino giant Sky City Entertainment, profits dropped and a new interim CEO has been named. Profit was down 8.5% to $66.5 million.
CEO Michael Ahearne is leaving next month and Callum Marrett will be his interim replacement. The casino said visits to its premises are up but the “challenging economic environment” has had an impact on it.
The Warehouse has today announced it’s selling its Torpedo 7 brand to Tahua Partners for just $1. It makes up just 5% of the retailers sales but will have an impact on its half year result.
A bright spot is Sky Television – announcing growth in all areas.
Across the board the results show the slowing economy and inflation, while falling, is affecting businesses.
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