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 preliminary year-over-year passenger traffic growth of 2.6% in March 2019.

         
Passenger Traffic, Cargo Volume and Aircraft Movements Highlights          
Statistics Mar'19   Mar'18   % Var. YTD’19   YTD’18   % Var
Domestic Passengers (thousands) 3,941   3,647   8.0% 11,531   10,573   9.1%
International Passengers (thousands) 2,205   2,292   -3.8% 6,576   6,732   -2.3%
Transit Passengers (thousands) 708   738   -4.1% 2,321   2,342   -0.9%
Total Passengers (thousands) 6,854   6,677   2.6% 20,428   19,647   4.0%
Cargo Volume (thousand tons) 38.2   36.6   4.4% 104.8   98.6   6.3%
Total Aircraft Movements (thousands) 71.5   73.9   -3.2% 212.7   213.4   -0.3%
 

Passenger Traffic Overview

Total passenger traffic in March 2019 increased 2.6% YoY, primarily reflecting growth of 6.6% in Argentina and 7.3% in Ecuador, partially offset by declines across most other countries of operations. The Company faced more difficult comps in March as the Easter holidays this year fell in April, while in 2018 they fell in March.

In Argentina, total passenger traffic increased 6.6% YoY, mainly driven by 14.8% growth in domestic passengers benefiting from the launch of several new routes and the addition of new airlines during 2018, together with a mix-shift to domestic from international travel by local passengers. This was partially offset by a decline of 7.4% in international passengers, reflecting continued challenging macro conditions. During March, Flybondi added a new domestic route connecting Iguazú with Rosario Airport, further increasing connectivity in the country, while Córdoba and Mendoza airports also reported a record-high traffic volume. In addition, during April low cost airline JetSmart begun domestic operations. Also that month the remaining regional flights were migrated from Aeroparque to Ezeiza Airport, with the exception of flights to/from Montevideo and Punta del Este.

In Italy, passenger traffic declined 2.2%, reflecting more difficult comps as last year traffic in March benefited from the Easter school holidays, which are falling in April this year.

In Brazil, passenger traffic declined 3.2%, impacted by a decline of approximately 20% in seat supply at Avianca Brasil, that also announced cancellation of certain routes at several Brazilian airports starting April 2019, and, to a lesser extent, a reduction in less profitable routes and frequencies by LATAM Airlines as it seeks to optimize operations at Brasilia Airport.

In Ecuador, passenger traffic increased 7.3%, with international passenger traffic at Guayaquil Airport up 14.2%, mainly attributed to the continued good performance of the Spirit Airlines flight to Fort Lauderdale, the addition of 3 weekly flights by COPA Airlines, and the start of operations of Jet Blue, that opened a route to Fort Lauderdale with seven weekly flights.

Passenger traffic in Uruguay declined 10.3% YoY mainly impacted by macro conditions experienced in Argentina and more difficult comps from the Easter holidays effect as discussed above, together with the cancellation of Avianca’s daily route to Bogotá, Colombia.

Cargo Volume and Aircraft Movements

Cargo volume increased 4.4% in March 2019, mainly as a result a 69.4% increase in Brazil, offset by a decline of 9.3% in Argentina, related to the continued challenging macroeconomic conditions.

Aircraft movements decreased 3.2% in March 2019, mainly as a result of a 13.3% decline in Brazil.

       
Summary Passenger Traffic, Cargo Volume and Aircraft Movements          
    Mar'19   Mar'18   % Var. YTD’19   YTD’18   % Var
Passenger Traffic (thousands)                      
Argentina   3,689   3,462   6.6% 10,960   10,247   7.0%
Italy   531   543   -2.2% 1,420   1,398   1.6%
Brazil   1,582   1,634   -3.2% 4,968   4,966   0.1%
Uruguay   185   206   -10.3% 643   685   -6.2%
Ecuador   410   382   7.3% 1,105   1,028   7.5%
Armenia   200   187   7.1% 579   524   10.4%
Peru   258   264   -2.3% 753   799   -5.7%
TOTAL   6,854   6,677   2.6% 20,428   19,647   4.0%
     
Cargo Volume (tons)                      
Argentina   20,145   22,219   -9.3% 56,057   60,392   -7.2%
Italy   1,064   929   14.5% 3,081   2,657   16.0%
Brazil   9,042   5,338   69.4% 23,524   14,083   67.0%
Uruguay   2,249   2,792   -19.4% 6,095   6,756   -9.8%
Ecuador   3,955   3,432   15.2% 11,313   10,045   12.6%
Armenia   1,331   1,465   -9.1% 3,558   3,474   2.4%
Peru   404   406   -0.7% 1,191   1,165   2.2%
TOTAL   38,189   36,581   4.4% 104,818   98,571   6.3%
 
Aircraft Movements                      
Argentina   39,347   39,395   -0.1% 115,890   113,425   2.2%
Italy   5,206   5,284   -1.5% 14,152   13,885   1.9%
Brazil   13,371   15,421   -13.3% 40,751   44,750   -8.9%
Uruguay   2,548   2,966   -14.1% 9,337   10,948   -14.7%
Ecuador   6,937   6,480   7.1% 20,636   17,989   14.7%
Armenia   1,826   1,751   4.3% 5,326   4,915   8.4%
Peru   2,308   2,579   -10.5% 6,646   7,467   -11.0%
TOTAL   71,543   73,876   -3.2% 212,738   213,379   -0.3%
 

To obtain the full text of this press release, please click on the following link: http://investors.corporacionamericaairports.com.

About Corporación América Airports

Corporación América Airports acquires, develops and operates airport concessions. The Company is the largest private airport operator in the world by the number of airports and the tenth largest based on passenger traffic. Currently, the Company operates 52 airports in 7 countries across Latin America and Europe (Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Peru, Ecuador, Armenia and Italy). In 2018, Corporación América Airports served 81.3 million passengers. 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.