Emirates airline records 'solid' US travel bookings despite Trump tariffs

Dubai to 'ride the wave' of global economic shocks, city's tourism boss says

The Emirates stand at Arabian Travel Market 2024. The 2025 event starts on April 28. Victor Besa / The National

Emirates airline recorded “solid” travel bookings between Dubai and the US in April as demand for flights remains unaffected by US President Donald Trump's tariffs, said the company's chief commercial officer.

Adnan Kazim said it was too early to see an impact but so far, “we haven't seen a dip coming in”.

“From the evidence that we have from the numbers, the way it's shaping up for us, we're not seeing an impact,” he said on Thursday before the Arabian Travel Market (ATM) next week. “Still, the growth pattern is looking quite positive.”

The airline is used to coping with disruptions such as geopolitical instability, economic recessions, currency fluctuations and high fuel prices, so its annual financial results announcement in May will indicate that “you can always manoeuvre through these sort of uncertainties”, Mr Kazim said.

“It is part of the DNA now of the business,” he said. “We've gone through many of these kind of turbulences in the past and we've come out of it even stronger.”

Mr Trump's tariffs regime is spiralling into a trade war and poses the biggest uncertainty for the aviation industry since the pandemic.

With little clarity on how travellers will behave in the face of a potentially deteriorating global economy and its impact on discretionary spending, airlines are struggling to accurately forecast their business.

Officials at a press conference in Dubai on this year’s Arabian Travel Market, which opens on April 28. Photo: RX Global

Dubai records 3% rise in first-quarter tourists

Issam Kazim, chief executive of Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing, said the emirate was in a good position to weather economic shocks due to its tourism track record and geographic position.

“I am confident that … Dubai is very well positioned to ride this wave. The diversified approach that we've created for the destination helps us in this,” Mr Kazim said.

He acknowledged that some markets will be affected more than others, but that travel remained crucial for doing business. Travel patterns may also shift with people taking either short breaks or fewer holidays with longer stays, he added.

“There will be that segment that we need to focus on within travelling parties and I am confident that we will be able to ride this wave in a positive way,” Mr Kazim said.

Dubai recorded a 3 per cent year-on-year increase in international visitors during the first quarter of 2025, according to the emirate's tourism chief.

“There are a lot of changes that are happening globally but with the diversified marketing approach that we have designed for ourselves, it gives us a chance to shift our focus as and when needed to make sure that the overall growth continues to be seen,” the tourism executive said.

The Middle East travel and tourism centre is seeking to grow the number of tourists, length of stay, spending, contribution to GDP and repeat visits.

“The length of stay has changed quite a bit: People are starting to see Dubai not just as a transit destination any more … but a destination where they want to spend a longer period of time. That works greatly for us,” he said.

Positive summer bookings

Emirates' forward bookings across its network of 150 destinations for May and into the summer are “really positive”, the airline executive said. “The outlook is trending even better than last year in terms of overall booking.”

This indicates that economic uncertainties and currency fluctuations are unlikely to dampen a post-Covid surge in travel demand, with people continuing to spend money on travelling, he added.

Asked if the US-China trade war may have an impact on the airline's business after expanding into Asia's biggest economy, Mr Kazim said that Dubai could benefit in terms of companies moving their operations to the emirate.

Emirates also plans to launch more routes to China in the “near future” after recently announcing daily non-stop flights between Dubai and Shenzhen from July 1, he said.

Airbus A350 deliveries

Emirates has so far received four Airbus A350s and expects to take delivery of another 12 to 15 of the wide-body model by the end of summer, the airline executive said.

“With a capacity of 312 seats, it gives you flexibility in deployment, it can enter into many regional secondary markets which is what we're doing today,” he said.

In March, Emirates said its summer schedule will include A350 services to Tunis, Amman, Istanbul, Dammam, Ho Chi Minh City, Baghdad and Oslo.

A second tranche of A350s will arrive after the summer that will be used on ultra-long-haul routes, with destinations to be announced soon, he said.

Additional premium economy seats

Emirates has already retrofitted 51 of its Boeing and Airbus wide-body planes, with plans to increase that to 87 jets by the end of 2025, according to Mr Kazim.

The retrofitted aircraft currently fly to 36 destination, which will increase to 73 by the end of the calendar year.

And as Emirates overhauls its aircraft interiors, it plans to increase the number of premium seats in its planes. The airline will add one million premium economy seats, to the one million it currently has, by the end of 2025, he said.

This comes amid higher passenger demand from corporate travellers as companies are spending less on travel budgets after the pandemic, according to Emirates' Mr Kazim.

“We're seeing more passengers moving from economy to premium economy, rather than cannibalising the business class,” he said.