Dividends, absence of associate losses bolster SIA's Q2 bottom line

Singapore

HIGHER dividends from long-term investments and an absence of share of losses from budget carrier Tiger Airways helped bolster the bottom line in the second quarter for Singapore Airlines (SIA).

SIA clocked a net profit of S$213.6 million, up from S$90.9 million a year ago, for the second quarter ended Sept 30, thanks to S$91.1 million in dividends from long-term investments, versus S$3 million a year ago. In addition, the reclassification of Tiger as its subsidiary saw the airline group recording S$0.9 million in share of profits of associated companies, compared to a hefty S$104 million loss in Q2 FY14/15.

Tiger became a subsidiary in October last year after SIA raised its stake in the budget carrier from 40 per cent to nearly 56 per cent. The budget carrier, which has embarked on a plan to turn itself around, last month revealed a net loss of S$12.76 million for the second quarter, narrowing substantially fr…