Lufthansa Cargo continues to go from strength to strength

March 19, 2019: Frankfurt-based Lufthansa cargo airline has announced over €2.7 billion in revenue and a profit of €268 million (adjusted EBIT) in 2018, making it the company’s second-best result in its history.

Year-on-year, revenue was up €189 million and profit €5 million. Compared to 2017, revenue was seven percent higher, while the yield per transported tonne of air cargo was also up seven percent. The volume of goods carried increased slightly by one percent overall. Cargo capacity offered rose 5.3 percent, which reduced the load factor slightly to 65.9 percent (-3.2 percentage points).

“Our employees have shown full commitment and done an amazing job for our customers. The result gives us additional momentum for new investments in the future,” said Peter Gerber, CEO and chairman of the executive board of Lufthansa Cargo.

"We managed to increase our revenue per unit and lower our unit costs last year. We will use the profit to modernise our means of production, which will further enhance our cost efficiency,” added Martin Schmitt, board member for finance and human resources.

Lufthansa Cargo will press ahead with its fleet modernisation and will sell the capacity of four brand-new Boeing 777 freighters this year. It also intends to gradually modernise the infrastructure at its logistics center in its Frankfurt hub. "We will continue to systematically drive digitisation along the entire transport chain. We are the first cargo airline in the world to offer our customers completely paperless booking and handling for standard cargo. With our new, fully digital PreCheck process, we will now significantly accelerate and simplify handling processes for our customers. And we will also continue to roll out the eDGD electronic dangerous goods declaration so that even more customers and shippers will be able to benefit from this digital solution,” said Gerber.

In terms of expectations, Gerber is essentially optimistic in his outlook. “The current year, unlike 2018, is again characterised by the weakness typical of the logistics market in the early months of the year. Given low global economic growth, this is currently being exacerbated by reports of Brexit and trade disputes. This means we will again face challenges in 2019, but we remain upbeat about the quarters ahead."