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Carnival chief reveals Caribbean hurricanes sparked ‘sizeable’ impact

Carnival Corporation said hurricanes Irma and Maria had a “sizeable impact” on the business.

Chief executive and president Arnold Donald said the hurricanes which swept through the Caribbean are likely to cost his company 10 to 12% a share.

Speaking at press conference, Donald revealed that although his company had taken a knock he expected an upturn in business in the final quarter of the year.

He said: “As we said in our last earnings call we expect a 10 to 12% impact per share. That is a combination of cancelled cruises, redirected cruises where we had to issue credits and some uncertainty for guests.

“A week or two after the hurricanes we noticed the uncertainty. That was all factored into our guidance for the year and we were able to raise our range. It was a sizeable impact.

“We expect things to go wrong throughout the year like hurricanes, geopolitical events, cyclones.

“But no one anticipates that much of a change in one quarter. But thanks to the hard work of our people, our partners and the travel agent professionals we will still be able to raise our guidance for the full year.”

Adam Goldstein, speaking in his capacity as Royal Caribbean’s president, said he would not be able to comment on how the hurricanes had affected business for another “few weeks”.

Michele Paige, president of the Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association, admitted the entire Caribbean had been affected by the hurricanes in September but stressed it was very much business as usual for much of the region.

“Perception could not be further from the truth,” she said. “We expect 90 per cent of the Caribbean to be welcoming guests in the coming weeks.

“In short one of the best ways to support the Caribbean is to cruise to the Caribbean.”

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