Carnival Corporation & plc, the world’s largest cruise shipping group, has reported a deep loss for the third quarter of its financial year and said that 55% of the passengers whose cruises had been canceled have requested cash refunds, the company said in a statement.
Net loss to three months to 31 August amounted to $2.9 billion, which included a $0.9 billion impairment charge that is a non- cash item.
Cash and cash equivalent items amounted to $8.2 billion at the end of August. Customer deposits declined to $2.4 billion from $2.9 billion at the end of May, which the company said it had expected. “As of August 31, 2020, the current portion of customer deposits was $2.1 billion with $0.1 billion relating to fourth quarter sailings. Approximately 55% of bookings taken during the quarter ending August 31, 2020 were new bookings, as opposed to FCC re-bookings, despite minimal advertising or marketing,’ Carnival said.
“While the company believes bookings in the first half of 2021 reflect expectations of the phased resumption of its guest cruise operations and anticipated itinerary changes, as of August 31, 2020, cumulative advanced bookings for the second half of 2021 capacity currently available for sale are at the higher end of the historical range and similar to where booking positions were in 2018 for the second half of 2019,” Carnival said.
