Datalex confident, but losses up 47%

DATALEX – the Dublin-headquartered travel software provider – reported a 47% year-on-year increase in first-half losses, but said that an overall improvement in the travel industry has been evident of late.

The company, which provides software solutions to companies in different areas of the travel industry, including airlines such as Aer Lingus and United Airlines, saw its first half pre-tax loss grow from $1.5m to $2.2m (€1.2m to €1.73m) on a year-on-year basis.

“Our performance in the first half of 2010 is in line with expectations, with revenue reflecting the current level of airline travel and industry caution on capital investment. We’ve secured new business with key strategic customers that will deliver long-term revenue and we’re continuing to deliver on the targeted cost reductions and we’ve seen a real improvement in our new business pipeline,” management said yesterday.

Total costs fell by 18% – to $13.8m – on the same period last year, while first-half revenue was down by 9%, year-on-year, at $13.1m. Last year, Datalex’s losses fell by $3m to $4.5m.

“The first six months of the year have seen an improvement in the travel industry,” the company added.