Arnold Donald, CEO of Carnival Corporation, told the Financial Times that he anticipates at least two more difficult years for the cruise industry, which he said will most likely not return to pre-pandemic levels until at least 2023. Reuters on Sunday.
In an interview with the Financial Times, Donald said that although the company’s entire fleet could sail by the end of this year, the corporation will need more time to return to pre-coronavirus revenues.
In January, the Carnival earnings report for the fourth quarter showed a higher-than-expected loss, with earnings per share missing the $ 0.10 level. The company earned $ 34 million during the quarter, which missed analysts’ estimates of $ 96.89 million, MarketBeat reported.
In January, Carnival announced that three of its cruise lines would extend their service suspensions until spring in response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Carnival Cruise Line, Princess Cruises and Holland America Line extended their suspensions until at least March, with Holland America shutting down services until April, and Princess Cruises doing so until May.
The cruise industry was one of the first to be affected by the coronavirus. In March, the cruise ship Grand Princess was stranded at sea for several days after passengers began to show symptoms of COVID-19.