Scuttled cruise operator Carnival to sell off six ships after sinking to a £3.5bn loss
Carnival warned there is more pain to come after it dived to a record £3.5billion loss in the second quarter.
The cruise operator has been forced to pause its cruises following the outbreak of coronavirus, which initially ran rampant on some of its ships, including the Diamond Princess that was quarantined for 27 days in Tokyo Bay with 3,700 passengers on board.
Carnival said it had around £6billion in the bank at the end of May – but is burning through around £520million a month while its vessels are in dock.
Cruise operator Carnival has been forced to pause its cruises following the outbreak of coronavirus, which initially ran rampant on some of its ships
It is still unsure when it will be able to start running holidays again, though it intends to operate with a smaller fleet and plans to sell off six ships.
Around £1.6billion of the second-quarter loss was a one-off hit from the difference in the sale price of the ships and their previous value.
In recent weeks the stricken travel company has fully drawn down a £2.4billion credit line and raised more than £5billion from selling bonds and equity.
But more than two-thirds has been wiped off the Florida-based company’s value since the crisis began playing out on the stock markets in late February.
In the US, Congress has opened an investigation into how the company handled the outbreak on its ships.
Even if cruise travel resumes, it is unclear what the demand will be for Carnival’s holidays. Shares fell 1.1 per cent, or 14p, to 1261p.