MTR Reports First-half Loss As Patronage Dives

The MTR Corporation plunged into the red in the first half of 2020 as part of the fallout from the Covid-19 outbreak and anti-government protests.

In interim results announced on Thursday, the rail operator posted a net loss of HK$334 million in the six months ending June, compared with a profit of HK$5.5 billion in the same period last year.

That's in line with a profit warning last month of a HK400 million loss because of the coronavirus outbreak and an overall economic slowdown.

Profit for its recurrent business fell by 84 percent to HK$400 million during the period, with total patronage down 38 percent year on year.

On the other hand, property development brought HK$5.2 billion in profit to the firm, while there was a re-valuation loss of HK$6 billion from investment property.

The firm also said its mainland China and international businesses were negatively affected by the pandemic.

Despite the first-half loss, CEO Jacob Kam said the firm's finances remained solid.

He also said its second-half performance depends largely on the epidemic situation.

Kam said the firm was pushing ahead with the completion of several local projects, including the Sha Tin-to-Central Link and Tuen Mun Line Extension.

As for fare concessions, Kam said with a 20 percent discount for passengers using the Octopus card in the second half of this year, concessions for the entire year will reach HK$3 billion.

The MTR Corporation has declared an interim dividend of 25 cents per share.