Royal Caribbean Cruises, which operates 34 ships under its namesake and Celebrity Cruise brands, said yesterday it swung to a fourth-quarter profit on lower cruise costs and increased revenue.
Net income climbed to $46.6m (£23.7m) from a loss of $3.6m during the same period a year ago. Revenue for the quarter gained 12% to $1.15bn compared with $1.03bn in the prior year, as passenger ticket sales climbed to $831.7m and onboard and other revenue increased to $321.5m.
The company said its net cruise costs on a per available passenger-cruise-days basis fell 3.3% because of the timing of drydocking and marketing costs. Its net yields rose 3.3%, driven by strong cruise pricing.
"It is very gratifying to achieve such strong performance, especially in our traditionally softest quarter," said Richard D Fain, chairman and chief executive. "We are particularly pleased with the solid yield performance of our brands, and healthy earnings despite significantly higher fuel costs."
The cruise operator said its Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises divi-sions grew yields by 3.4% for the full year despite a less robust Caribbean pricing environment.-AP
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