| Journal: TWUK | Section: |
| Title: | Issue Date: 28/08/00 |
| Author: | Page Number: 76 |
| Copyright: Other |
P&O Stena Line profits take tumble
P&O STENA Line has plunged into the red with a £1.4 million pre-tax loss for the first half of this year.The figure compares with a £20 million pre-tax profit in the same period last year.
The cross-Channel operator blamed the abolition of duty-free last July for the result.
It pointed out that June last year saw unprecedented volumes of traffic due to people wishing to buy duty-free in the last month before abolition.
Passenger numbers fell from 5.9 million in the first half of 1999 to 5.4 million this year. Tourist vehicles were down from 983,000 to 815,000. It reported an increase in half-year losses from £16.8 million in 1999 to £41.7 million this year.
Revenue fell from £245.7 million to £203.6 million, which the firm attributed to a reduction in on-board sales, lower passenger volumes and exchange rate fluctuations.