Fuel hedges, cheaper debt, and investment gains carry Emirates, Empower, and IHC through a war-hit quarter

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. This also marks the group’s first half-year carrying the full cost of the Gulf conflict, as global jet fuel prices roughly doubled from a year earlier. Group revenue fell 12% to AED 66.2 bn for the April-September period, and EBITDA dropped 41% to AED 12.5 bn.

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 in 1H FY 2026/27, while its revenue dropped 13% to AED 56.9 bn. Meanwhile, 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% y-o-y during the six-month period, 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 2026/27 and said the aviation group is “keeping a close watch on costs and geopolitical developments.”

Cheaper finance costs lift Empower’s net income

Empower’s net income attributable to shareholders rose 3.1% y-o-y to AED 292.0 mn in 3Q 2026, while its revenue grew 4.7% to AED 1.2 bn, according to the company’s interim financial statements (pdf). For 9M 2026, attributable net income rose 10.9% y-o-y to AED 755.6 mn, while revenue increased 4.6% to AED 2.7 bn.

The quarter’s income growth was helped by cheaper financing: 3Q operating income slipped 0.3% to AED 355.6 mn, as cost of sales rose 6.5%, faster than revenue. Repairs and maintenance costs alone jumped 45.8%. However, a 23.6% drop in net finance costs to AED 32.1 mn helped offset the jump.

The financial statements also confirm that Empower has now refinanced its AED 5.5 bn in revolving credit facilities with its existing lender, extending maturities to October 2028. Last month, we reported that Empower planned to replace its existing credit lines with new facilities worth up to AED 5.5 bn.

Signed capacity is running ahead of connections: Contracted capacity reached 2.06 mn refrigeration tons (RT) at end-September, while connected capacity stood at 1.74 mn RT. That leaves c. 320k RT signed but not yet billed. Project commitments rose c. 60% since December to AED 1.3 bn as Empower awarded new plant contracts.

Investment gains power IHC’s 9M earnings surge

International Holding Company’s (IHC) net income attributable to shareholders slipped 30% y-o-y to around AED 3.3 bn in 3Q 2026, according to the company’s financial statements (pdf). Meanwhile, revenue jumped 30.8% to AED 35.6 bn, it said in its management discussion and analysis (pdf). The decline was mostly a base effect: The company logged a one-off gain of AED 2.8 bn in 3Q 2025 from selling district cooling company PAL Cooling.

On a 9M basis, net income attributable to shareholders more than doubled to AED 21.2 bn as revenue climbed 33.2% to AED 100.5 bn. Investment and other income more than tripled to AED 24.2 bn — including AED 19.3 bn of fair-value gains — making portfolio returns the main reason earnings grew so much faster than revenue, continuing the investment-gain story visible in 1Q.

Energy and mining supplied the operating growth spurt, with the segment revenue nearly quadrupling to AED 19.3 bn in 9M as minerals, metals, and hydrocarbon trading scaled up, according to a press release (pdf). The segment also swung to a AED 1.7 bn income from a loss a year earlier. Real estate and construction remained IHC’s biggest revenue contributor at AED 33.3 bn, up 12.8%.

The expansion is showing up on the balance sheet too: IHC deployed around AED 25 bn into investments during the period, while total debt rose 26.6% since year-end to AED 106.9 bn and net debt more than tripled to AED 30.4 bn. Recent wagers include Judan’s 50.1% acquisition of Alpha Wave Global and IHC’s move to take 80% of Marlan Holding.

Property development boosts Emaar’s revenues again

Emaar Properties reported a net income of AED 5.96 bn in 3Q 2026, up 3.3% y-o-y, while revenue grew just 2.7% to AED 13.6 bn, according to the company’s financials (pdf). For 9M 2026, revenue increased 13% y-o-y to AED 37.5 bn, while EBITDA rose 19% to AED 19.7 bn, the company said in its earnings release (pdf). The company reported AED 17.1 bn in net income during the first nine months of the year.

Property development remained Emaar’s largest revenue source in 9M 2026, with UAE developments bringing in AED 28.3 bn, up 18% y-o-y, and international developments adding AED 1.6 bn, up 16%. Revenue from shopping malls, retail, and commercial leasing increased 10% y-o-y to AED 5.2 bn, while hospitality, leisure, and entertainment contributed AED 2.4 bn. However, the company said lower international visitor numbers weighed on hospitality and entertainment revenue.

Emaar’s board approved a special dividend of AED 4.4 bn, equivalent to AED 0.5 per share, in addition to the company’s regular annual dividend.