Corporación América Airports S.A. Reports March 2022 Passenger Traffic

Rhea-AI Summary

Corporación América Airports S.A. (CAAP) reported a significant 138.9% YoY increase in total passenger traffic for March 2022, reaching 68.6% of pre-pandemic levels. Domestic and international traffic rose, bolstered by the full re-opening of borders in Argentina. Key statistics include 4,738 thousand total passengers in March and 13,475 thousand year-to-date. Notably, cargo volume grew 15.2% YoY but fell 20.5% compared to March 2019. Overall, CAAP's operations show a strong recovery trend supported by improving travel demand across its countries of operation.

Positive

• 138.9% YoY increase in total passenger traffic.
• Passenger traffic reached 68.6% of March 2019 levels.
• Domestic and international passenger traffic improved significantly.
• Cargo volume increased 15.2% YoY.

Negative

• Overall passenger traffic down 31.4% compared to March 2019.
• Cargo volume dropped 20.5% compared to March 2019.
• Aircraft movements declined 20.6% compared to March 2019.

Total passenger traffic continued the recovery trend reaching 68.6% of March 2019 traffic levels.

LUXEMBOURG--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Corporación América Airports S.A. (NYSE: CAAP), (“CAAP” or the “Company”) the largest private sector airport operator in the world by number of airports, reported today a 138.9% YoY increase in passenger traffic in March 2022, reaching 68.6% of pre-pandemic levels of March 2019.

Passenger Traffic Monthly Performance (vs. 2019) (Graphic: Business Wire)

Passenger Traffic, Cargo Volume and Aircraft Movements Highlights (2022 vs. 2021)
Statistics		Mar'22		Mar'21		% Var.			YTD’22		YTD'21(1)(2)(3)		% Var.
Domestic Passengers (thousands)		2,965		1,333		122.4%			8,475		4,368		94.0%
International Passengers (thousands)		1,336		362		269.5%			3,537		1,036		241.4%
Transit Passengers (thousands)		438		288		51.8%			1,463		1,131		29.3%
Total Passengers (thousands)		4,738		1,983		138.9%			13,475		6,535		106.2%
Cargo Volume (thousand tons)		30.4		26.4		15.2%			81.0		67.9		19.3%
Total Aircraft Movements (thousands)		56.8		32.6		74.1%			156.4		98.4		58.9%
Passenger Traffic, Cargo Volume and Aircraft Movements Highlights (2022 vs. 2019)
Statistics		Mar'22		Mar'19(1)		% Var.			YTD’22		YTD'19(1)(3)		% Var.
Domestic Passengers (thousands)		2,965		3,945		-24.9%			8,475		11,545		-26.6%
International Passengers (thousands)		1,336		2,267		-41.1%			3,537		6,754		-47.6%
Transit Passengers (thousands)		438		694		-36.9%			1,463		2,272		-35.6%
Total Passengers (thousands)		4,738		6,906		-31.4%			13,475		20,571		-34.5%
Cargo Volume (thousand tons)		30.4		38.3		-20.5%			81.0		105.1		-23.0%
Total Aircraft Movements (thousands)		56.8		71.5		-20.6%			156.4		212.7		-26.5%

(1)	Note that preliminary passenger traffic figures for 2019, as well as January 2020 for Ezeiza Airport, in Argentina, were adjusted to include additional inbound passengers not accounted for in the initial count, for an average of approximately 5% of total passenger traffic at Ezeiza Airport and 1% of total traffic at CAAP, during that period. Importantly, inbound traffic does not affect revenues, as tariffs are applicable on departure passengers.
(2)	Preliminary data on 1,256 flights in January 2020 at Brasilia Airport, due to delays in the submission of information by third parties.
(3)	Cargo volumes in Uruguay were rectified from January 2019 to June 2020, to reflect all cargo passing through the cargo terminal, instead of air cargo only.

Passenger Traffic Overview

Total passenger traffic in March 2022 grew 138.9% compared to the same period of last year, driven by increases across all countries of operations, particularly in Argentina, where traffic demand continued to recover following the full re-opening of borders on November 1, 2021 and the gradual relaxation of travel requirements. When compared to March 2019, overall passenger traffic declined 31.4%, improving from the 35.0% decline posted in February. International and domestic passenger traffic improved sequentially reaching 58.9% and 75.1% of pre-pandemic levels of March 2019, respectively.

In Argentina, total passenger traffic increased 153.0% YoY and reached 67.0% of March 2019 levels, with international passenger traffic improving to 48.4% of pre-pandemic levels, showing a continued strong recovery from the 6.2% posted in July 2021, the lowest level of the year. International traffic continued benefiting from the full re-opening of borders on November 1, 2021 and the gradual relaxation of travel requirements. Domestic passenger traffic also performed well, reaching 77.5% of March 2019 levels. Effective April 7, 2022, Covid tests are no longer required and travelers must complete an affidavit form. In addition, foreigners are required to present a Covid-19 health insurance.

In Italy, where travel restrictions have eased during the last couple of months, passenger traffic grew 18.2x YoY reflecting easier comparisons due to the closure of Florence airport in February and March of last year, to perform runway works. Total traffic reached 68.2% of March 2019 pre-pandemic levels, improving sequentially from the 58.1% and 41.5% posted in February and January, when traffic was impacted by the Omicron variant.

In Brazil, total passenger traffic increased 104.2% YoY, and reached 76.5% of March 2019 levels. This was below the 81.8% achieved in January 2022 but above the 72.7% posted in February, when traffic was impacted by flight cancelations, done by some of the airlines, due to COVID cases within their crew. Domestic traffic stood at 86.0% of pre-pandemic levels.

Total passenger traffic in Uruguay increased 6.2x YoY and reached 57.9% of March 2019 levels, up from the 48.4% posted in February. Traffic in Uruguay continues to improve following the full re-open of borders on November 1, 2021 together with the gradual relaxation of travel requirements.

In Ecuador, passenger traffic increased 150.4% YoY, reaching 88.5% of pre-pandemic levels of March 2019, up from the 78.0% posted in February. International passenger traffic continued to recover reaching 89.1% of pre-pandemic levels, boosted by routes to the US and Panama which have been seeing higher passenger traffic than in 2019 for several months now. Domestic passenger traffic improved to 87.5% of March 2019 pre-pandemic levels, up from the 53.5% and 69.6% posted in January and February, respectively.

In Armenia, where the vaccination roll out has improved significantly in the past few months, total passenger traffic increased 63.2% YoY. Passenger traffic continued performing well and stood at 95.1% of pre-pandemic levels of 2019. Traffic in Armenia is 100% international and has been increasing sequentially since the elimination of restrictions on air travel in September 2020.

Cargo Volume and Aircraft Movements

Cargo volume increased 15.2% YoY. When compared to March 2019, total cargo volume dropped 20.5%, mainly driven by decreases of 40.8% in Brazil and 19.8% in Argentina, accounting for over 95% of the overall volume reduction. Importantly, Italy and Uruguay reported higher cargo volumes compared to pre-pandemic levels of March 2019.

Aircraft movements increased 74.1% YoY. When compared to March 2019, Aircraft movements declined 20.6%, mainly as a result of a 22.7% decrease in Argentina, which explains around 60% of the overall drop, together with a 14.7% decline in Brazil. To note, aircraft movement in Armenia was above March 2019 levels and stood at over 93% of pre-pandemic levels in Ecuador and Uruguay.

Summary Passenger Traffic, Cargo Volume and Aircraft Movements (2022 vs. 2021)

		Mar'22		Mar'21		% Var.			YTD'22		YTD'21		% Var.
Passenger Traffic (thousands)
Argentina(1)		2,506		991		153.0%			7,064		2,791		153.1%
Italy		362		19		1815.0%			802		74		981.7%
Brazil(2)		1,210		593		104.2%			3,842		2,653		44.8%
Uruguay		107		15		624.1%			323		45		624.6%
Ecuador		363		145		150.4%			872		385		126.6%
Armenia		190		116		63.2%			571		271		110.6%
Peru		-		105		-100.0%			-		317		-100.0%
TOTAL		4,738		1,983		138.9%			13,475		6,535		106.2%
(1) See Footnote 1 in previous table. (2) See Footnote 2 in previous table. (3) See Footnote 3 in previous table.

Cargo Volume (tons)
Argentina		16,165		14,397		12.3%			43,132		36,165		19.3%
Italy		1,536		1,342		14.5%			3,909		3,403		14.9%
Brazil		5,352		4,987		7.3%			13,959		13,701		1.9%
Uruguay(3)		2,928		2,573		13.8%			7,023		6,202		13.2%
Ecuador		3,262		1,480		120.4%			9,244		4,457		107.4%
Armenia		1,196		1,358		-12.0%			3,689		3,228		14.3%
Peru		-		287		-100.0%			-		697		-100.0%
TOTAL		30,439		26,425		15.2%			80,956		67,852		19.3%
Aircraft Movements
Argentina		30,427		17,574		73.1%			82,106		49,902		64.5%
Italy		4,071		645		531.2%			10,071		2,177		362.6%
Brazil		11,402		7,476		52.5%			33,683		26,262		28.3%
Uruguay		2,385		884		169.8%			7,600		2,381		219.2%
Ecuador		6,458		3,577		80.5%			17,764		11,270		57.6%
Armenia		2,052		1,255		63.5%			5,151		2,975		73.1%
Peru		-		1,203		-100.0%			-		3,430		-100.0%
TOTAL		56,795		32,614		74.1%			156,375		98,397		58.9%

Summary Passenger Traffic, Cargo Volume and Aircraft Movements (2022 vs. 2019)

		Mar'22		Mar'19		% Var.			YTD'22		YTD'19		% Var.
Passenger Traffic (thousands)
Argentina(1)		2,506		3,741		-33.0%			7,064		11,103		-36.4%
Italy		362		531		-31.8%			802		1,420		-43.5%
Brazil(2)		1,210		1,582		-23.5%			3,842		4,968		-22.7%
Uruguay		107		185		-42.1%			323		643		-49.7%
Ecuador		363		410		-11.5%			872		1,105		-21.1%
Armenia		190		200		-4.9%			571		579		-1.3%
Peru		-		258		-100.0%			-		753		-100.0%
TOTAL		4,738		6,906		-31.4%			13,475		20,571		-34.5%
(1) See Footnote 1 in previous table. (2) See Footnote 2 in previous table. (3) See Footnote 3 in previous table.

Cargo Volume (tons)
Argentina		16,165		20,145		-19.8%			43,132		56,057		-23.1%
Italy		1,536		1,064		44.4%			3,909		3,081		26.9%
Brazil		5,352		9,042		-40.8%			13,959		23,524		-40.7%
Uruguay(3)		2,928		2,343		25.0%			7,023		6,379		10.1%
Ecuador		3,262		3,955		-17.5%			9,244		11,313		-18.3%
Armenia		1,196		1,331		-10.2%			3,689		3,558		3.7%
Peru		-		404		-100.0%			-		1,191		-100.0%
TOTAL		30,439		38,282		-20.5%			80,956		105,102		-23.0%
Aircraft Movements
Argentina		30,427		39,347		-22.7%			82,106		115,890		-29.2%
Italy		4,071		5,206		-21.8%			10,071		14,152		-28.8%
Brazil		11,402		13,371		-14.7%			33,683		40,751		-17.3%
Uruguay		2,385		2,548		-6.4%			7,600		9,337		-18.6%
Ecuador		6,458		6,937		-6.9%			17,764		20,636		-13.9%
Armenia		2,052		1,826		12.4%			5,151		5,326		-3.3%
Peru		-		2,308		-100.0%			-		6,646		-100.0%
TOTAL		56,795		71,543		-20.6%			156,375		212,738		-26.5%

About Corporación América Airports

Corporación América Airports acquires, develops and operates airport concessions. Currently, the Company operates 53 airports in 6 countries across Latin America and Europe (Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Ecuador, Armenia and Italy). In 2021, Corporación América Airports served 35.7 million passengers, or 42.4% of the 84.2 million passengers served in 2019. The Company is listed on the New York Stock Exchange where it trades under the ticker “CAAP”. For more information, visit http://investors.corporacionamericaairports.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220418005215/en/

Investor Relations Contact

Patricio Iñaki Esnaola

Email: patricio.esnaola@caairports.com

Phone: +5411 4899-6716

Source: Corporación América Airports S.A.

FAQ

What was the passenger traffic growth for CAAP in March 2022?

CAAP reported a 138.9% YoY increase in passenger traffic for March 2022.

How does CAAP's passenger traffic in March 2022 compare to March 2019?

In March 2022, CAAP's total passenger traffic reached 68.6% of pre-pandemic levels from March 2019.

What were the cargo volume changes reported by CAAP?

CAAP's cargo volume increased by 15.2% YoY but decreased by 20.5% compared to March 2019.

What percentage of pre-pandemic levels did Argentina's passenger traffic reach in March 2022?

Argentina's passenger traffic reached 67.0% of March 2019 levels in March 2022.

What is the significance of the reported increase in CAAP's total aircraft movements?

CAAP's total aircraft movements increased by 74.1% YoY in March 2022.