Emirates chief says performance much improved in first half

Clark upbeat ahead of results for first six months of this year

Emirates says business is improving this year. Courtesy Emirates

Emirates has had a better first half in the current financial year than the same period a year ago when it reported a 75 per cent decline in profits.

"The six months were a lot better than this time last year," said the Emirates airline president Tim Clark at an aviation security conference in Dubai.

The carrier is expected to report its results next month for the six months ended September 30.

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Results a year ago were affected by a strong dollar and tougher competition as it filled a lower percentage of seats on a year-on-year basis.

This year, Emirates has had to contend with travel restrictions imposed by the United States which mostly impacted carriers in the Middle East, although have since largely been lifted. The airline cut frequencies on some US flights in a response to those restrictions weakening passenger demand.

Mr Clark said demand had fallen by around 15 per cent to 18 per cent on US flights, though the airline had just had "a very robust summer" there.