Hedges and cargo carry Emirates through its first full war-hit half

Emirates Group’s net income fell 66% y-o-y to AED 3.6 bn in 1H FY 2026-27, according to Dubai Media Office — a result it views as “remarkable” given last year’s high base, where it delivered record earnings, and the fact that this was the group’s first half-year to carry the full cost of the Gulf conflict, with global jet fuel prices roughly double the level of a year earlier. Group revenue fell 12% to AED 66.2 bn for the April-September period.

IN CONTEXT- Emirates trimmed its June schedule by almost 16%, leaving it flying 14% fewer flights than in June 2025. By the end of September, Emirates was running 91% of its pre-disruption network, according to the statement. It also confirmed its employee base dropped by 2% from end-March to 30 September.

The breakdown: Emirates’ airline’s income after tax fell 66% to AED 3.3 bn, on revenue of AED 56.9 bn (down 13%). Dnata’s income after tax more than halved to AED 309 mn, on revenue of AED 11.0 bn (down 7%).

Passenger traffic is the weak spot: Seat capacity (ASKM) fell 17%, but passenger traffic (RPKM) fell 25%, pulling the seat factor down to 72.0% from 79.5%. Emirates carried 21.8 mn passengers, down 22%. Management says customer demand “held firm.” Meanwhile, cargo revenue rose 52% despite a 1% decline in tonnage as air freight capacity tightened amid disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz.

The hedges absorbed most of the fuel shock: Emirates burned 12% less fuel than a year earlier, yet its pre-hedging fuel bill rose 60%. AED 7.1 bn in hedging gains brought the net increase down to 13%.

What’s next: Chairman and CEO of Emirates Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum expressed “measured optimism” heading into 2H 26-27, and said the aviation group is “keeping a close watch on costs and geopolitical developments.”

Flynas recovers lost ground

Flynas swung back to a net income of SAR 27 mn in 3Q 2026 from a SAR 241 mn loss in 2Q, after it rebuilt the flying capacity the regional conflict had forced it to cut, the budget airline said in its Tadawul disclosure and its earnings release (pdf).

9M stays in the red, narrowing against last year. Over nine months flynas posted a net loss of SAR 96 mn, mostly the 2Q hit, against a SAR 594 mn loss a year earlier that included SAR 1.1 bn in one-off IPO and ESOP costs. Excluding those, 9M 2025 was a net income of SAR 489 mn, so the company swung to a loss on an adjusted basis. Revenue came in at SAR 6.4 bn, up 6.3%.

REMEMBER- Flynas spent the past months upgrading and expanding: signing an agreement to provide low-cost air travel services to Saudi government entities, buying 10% of groundhandler Swissport Saudi Arabia, and taking a 49% stake in flynas Syria with operations set to begin in 4Q 2026.

4Q is looking like fresh turbulence: The current quarter kicked off with strikes on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport, which closed for weeks before partially reopening at the end of last month. Other airports were also struck across the Kingdom. Flynas said it adjusted its network to fly from open airports and cut costs to protect liquidity, but the extent of the shock’s impact on the carrier remains to be seen.

Gasco turns up the gas

Gasco Holding’s bottom line rose 47.5% y-o-y to SAR 102.8 mn in 3Q, the Saudi gas distributor said in a Tadawul filing. Revenue climbed 60.5% to SAR 1.3 bn, driven mainly by a SAR 430 mn increase in gas sales on higher prices and volumes, alongside a SAR 47 mn rise in transportation services revenue. Higher operating expenses, up SAR 32.7 mn, and a SAR 7.4 mn decline in investment and finance income weighed on the results, while finance costs also edged up.

The nine-month performance stayed strong, with net income up 31.6% y-o-y to SAR 244.2 mn and revenue rising 31.7% to SAR 3.1 bn. Gas sales accounted for most of the growth, increasing SAR 657 mn on higher prices and volumes, while commercial projects added SAR 37 mn and transportation and maintenance services contributed another SAR 55 mn.

Ports power Sisco’s earnings surge

Sustained Infrastructure Holding’s (Sisco Holding) net income jumped 271.2% y-o-y to SAR 63.1 mn in 3Q 2026, riding on a record quarterly revenue of SAR 764.6 mn, up 94.8%, the ports-and-logistics investor said in a Tadawul filing and its earnings release (pdf). The surge was driven by its ports business, where revenue more than doubled to SAR 649.6 mn on higher gateway volumes at the Red Sea Gateway Terminal (RSGT), a jump in Multi-Purpose Terminal (MPT) volumes, and the ramp-up of RSGTI. Logistics revenue also grew 79.4% to SAR 57.7 mn.

9M told the same story, with net income rising 140.7% y-o-y to SAR 148.5 mn and revenue climbing 82% to SAR 1.9 bn, driven by ports growth and the inclusion of Ports Services and Storage Company (PSS) in the logistics segment. Some of the volume gains also reflected the temporary redirection of shipping activity following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, CEO of Sisco Holding Mauricio Zuazua said.