For the fiscal year ending March 31, Singapore Airlines (SIA) reported significant operational success, achieving record revenue of $20,522 million. However, this substantial top-line growth was accompanied by a sharp decline in profitability, with net profit falling by 57.4% to $1,184 million.
Profitability Overview and Key Drivers
Despite the record revenue—which marked an increase of 5% year-on-year (y-o-y) or $982 million—the decline in net profit was attributed primarily to two key factors. First, the absence of a $1,098 million non-cash accounting gain that had been recognized previously in November 2024 following the completion of the Air India-Vistara merger. Second, the group reported an associated companies loss of -$846 million this year, contrasting with profits recorded over only four months in the prior period, as SIA accounted for a full year’s losses from Air India.
Regarding shareholder returns, SIA proposed a final dividend amounting to 22 cents. This, combined with a second tranche of special dividend set at 7 cents, results in a total dividend payment of 37 cents (this figure includes an interim dividend structure totaling five cents and three cents, respectively).
Operational Expenditure and Profit Growth
The group’s overall expenditure increased by $317 million (+1.8%), reaching $18,148 million. This rise was driven by a substantial increase in non-fuel costs of $677 million (+5.4%), though this growth was partially mitigated by a reduction in net fuel costs of -$361 million (-6.7%).
- Non-Fuel Costs: The higher spending on non-fuel items was mainly due to overall capacity expansion and increased inflationary pressures.
- Net Fuel Cost: The decrease in net fuel cost stemmed from a 5.6% contraction in average full-year fuel prices (-$310 million) coupled with gains from fuel hedging of -$88 million. These savings were somewhat offset by an uplift in volumes amounting to +$221 million.
Ultimately, the combination of higher revenue growth and controlled expenditure led to a notable rise in operating profit, which increased by 39% or $665 million y-o-y for the twelve months ending March 31.
Financial Health and Liquidity
SIA’s financial structure improved significantly, with the debt-to-equity ratio falling to 0.62 times as of March 31, compared to 0.82 times one year prior. The company’s cash and bank balances saw a decline of $0.3 billion, settling at $7.9 billion.
This reduction in liquid funds was the result of several major outflows: capital expenditure of -$2.6 billion, dividend payments of -$1.2 billion, repayment of borrowings totaling -$1.3 billion, and lease payments of -$0.6 billion. These expenditures were partially offset by $5.1 billion in net cash generated from operations and an issuance of bonds valued at +$0.5 billion.
The group maintains access to a substantial $3.3 billion in committed lines of credit, all of which remain undrawn. Additionally, SIA holds $1.7 billion in fixed deposits with tenors exceeding 12 months.
Passenger and Cargo Performance
Air Travel
Operationally, the airline reported a record passenger count for FY2026, with both Singapore Airlines (SIA) and Scoot carrying a combined total of 42.4 million passengers—a year-on-year increase of 7.7%. The group’s Passenger Load Factor (PLF) rose 1.1 percentage points to 87.7%, indicating that traffic growth of 4.7% exceeded the capacity expansion rate of 3.4%. Furthermore, passenger yields improved by 1.0%, reaching 10.4 cents per revenue passenger-kilometre.
Cargo Operations
In contrast to air travel, cargo flown revenue experienced a decline of $45 million (-2.1%), settling at $2,167 million. This drop was largely attributed to a decrease in yields of 3.6%. However, the Cargo Load Factor (CLF) saw a marginal increase of 0.2 percentage points, reaching 56.3%, as cargo loads grew by 1.7%, slightly outpacing the capacity increase of 1.4%.
Strategic Outlook
SIA affirmed its commitment to its 25.1% investment in the Air India Group and stated that it continues to collaborate closely with its partner, Tata Sons, to support Air India’s extensive multi-year transformation program. Despite these efforts, the article noted that Air India is facing several industry headwinds, including supply chain constraints, air space limitations, operational restrictions concerning key Middle East markets, and elevated jet fuel prices.
