Sabre reported a slight increase in air distribution bookings in the second quarter, beating the company’s earlier Q2 expectations, with executives highlighting "resilient" corporate travel demand as a key reason for that growth.
The company’s Q2 air bookings increased by 1 per cent year-on-year to 76.1 million, while accommodation and other bookings rose by 5 per cent year-on-year to 15.5 million. These figures combined for an overall 1 per cent year-on-year increase in total bookings for the quarter.
In the previous quarter, Sabre had projected air distribution growth would be flat in the second quarter. But president and CEO Kurt Ekert said a "modest recovery" in June meant that Q2 air booking trends had been "better than expected".
Corporate booking volumes showed "continued steady performance and resilience" during the quarter, added Ekert in an earnings call, with Sabre benefiting from having around 45 per cent of its distribution volumes from corporates and travel management companies.
"Corporate is relatively outperforming leisure, which is a nice reversal on what we experienced last year," said Ekert.
Ekert added that air distribution bookings in North and South America stayed in growth territory throughout the quarter, although high fuel prices and the Middle East conflict continued to have a negative impact on growth, particularly in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA).
The company forecasts that air distribution bookings will be flat or up by low-single-digit percentages in the third quarter, followed by growth in the low- to mid-single digits in Q4.
In the earnings call, Ekert also said NDC bookings are "growing very steadily" and now represent about 5 per cent of Sabre's total distribution volumes.
Sabre’s total revenue for the quarter increased by 4 per cent year-on year to $712 million. The company reported a net loss of $36.2 million for Q2, compared with a net loss of $256.4 million in the same quarter of 2025.