PIA swings to profit in first half of this year as privatisation push gathers pace

The Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) posted a pre-tax profit in the first half of 2025, which a company source said is its first such for the period in about two decades, ahead of a planned sale of the national carrier later this year.

The PIA, part of the PIA Holding Company, recorded a pre-tax profit of Rs11.5 billion ($40.64 million) in the six months to June, compared with the same period in 2024 when it remained in a loss before taxes and only managed a rare annual profit through deferred tax adjustments. Net profit for the current half year stood at Rs6.8bn.

The disclosure comes as Islamabad presses ahead with a fresh attempt to privatise the airline, a key condition under Pakistan’s $7bn IMF bailout.

A company source said it was the state-run airline’s first such profit since 2004. Financial records before 2014 are no longer publicly available on the airline’s and the stock exchange’s websites.

The planned sale of the PIA would mark the country’s first major privatisation in about two decades, with divestment of loss-making state firms a central plank of last year’s bailout.

Lucrative UK routes

High fuel and service costs continue to weigh, but a steep drop in finance costs after Islamabad assumed about 80 per cent of the PIA’s legacy debt last year was a decisive factor in its return to profit. Despite the gain, the PIA’s equity remains negative, underscoring the fragility of its turnaround.

A previous privatisation attempt collapsed last year after a single lowball offer was received, but the government has since drawn interest from five domestic business groups, including Airblue, Lucky Cement, investment firm Arif Habib and Fauji Fertiliser. Final bids are expected later this year.

Britain lifted in July a five-year ban on Pakistani airlines imposed after a fatal 2020 crash and a pilot licensing scandal, allowing the PIA to reapply for lucrative UK routes. The move follows similar steps by the European Union late last year.

The PIA had previously estimated an annual revenue loss of around Rs40bn from the British ban, with London, Manchester and Birmingham among its most profitable routes.