DUBAI: Dubai-based carrier Emirates has refunded $1.72 billion to customers who were unable to take their scheduled flights due to coronavirus travel restrictions the airline announced on Wednesday.
Over the seven-month period from April, the airline processed 1.7 million refund requests and returned about $1.28 billion to passengers who booked tickets directly with Emirates, and the balance reimbursed via travel agencies.
Emirates also managed over 130,000 refunds-related queries from customers and travel agency partners and made status changes to nearly 4 million flight coupons, the statement added.
“In the early months of 2020, COVID-19 massively disrupted travel around the world and led to an unprecedented volume of refunds requests across the aviation and travel industry, including at Emirates,” Tim Clark, President of Emirates, said.
“It was not a situation any airline wanted, particularly while also facing a cash crunch from drastically reduced operations. Through those difficult months, as we dealt with the impact of the pandemic on our business, we’ve never lost sight of our commitment to our customers.”
“Emirates has now cleared our backlog of refunds. We still have higher volumes of refunds and flight coupon change requests compared to pre-pandemic times, but we now have the capability to manage these within a seven-day turnaround,” Clark added.
Emirates refunds $1.72 billion to customers hit by coronavirus travel restrictions
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Emirates refunds $1.72 billion to customers hit by coronavirus travel restrictions
- Emirates also managed over 130,000 refunds-related queries from customers and travel agency partners
Closing Bell: Saudi main index closes in red at 10,709
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index dipped on Thursday, losing 138.89 points, or 1.28 percent, to close at 10,709.04.
The total trading turnover of the benchmark index was SR6.59 billion ($1.75 billion), as 102 of the listed stocks advanced, while 154 retreated.
The MSCI Tadawul Index decreased, down 22.40 points or 1.52 percent, to close at 1,450.58.
The Kingdom’s parallel market Nomu lost 123.85 points, or 0.54 percent, to close at 22,792.98. This came as 30 of the listed stocks advanced, while 40 retreated.
The best-performing stock was Al-Rajhi Co. for Cooperative Insurance with its share price surging by 9.96 percent to SR74.50.
Other top performers included Jazan Development and Investment Co., which saw its share price rise by 9.89 percent to SR8.33, and Gulf Insurance Group, which saw a 7.48 percent increase to SR23.
On the downside, City Cement Co. and Al Gassim Investment Holding Co. saw declines, with their shares dropping by 5.51 percent and 4.22 percent to SR11.50 and SR13.15, respectively.
On the announcement front, Almoosa Health Co. has signed a construction contract with Almajal Alarabi Group valued at SR608.85 million to complete the electrical, mechanical, and architectural finishing works for the new Almoosa Specialized Hospital in AlHofuf City.
The agreement, finalized on Feb. 26, covers all complementary internal and external works based on approved engineering designs to ensure the facility is fully operationally ready upon completion.
According to a Tadawul statement, work on the project will commence immediately, with an expected completion timeline of 16 months.
Almoosa Health intends to finance the development through a combination of its own resources and long-term Shariah-compliant facilities secured from local banks, with the financial impact anticipated to begin following the hospital’s completion and commissioning.
Almoosa’s share price surged by 4.24 percent to reach SR147.50.
