Commissions
The publicly traded lines publish commission payments as part of their quarterly earnings reports. It’s not an exact indicator, as air issues are included in the lineage and the companies don’t break down North American versus European payments, but the listings do provide a sense of the general direction commissions are going in the cruise business. So Cruise Week publishes the most recent published commission payments of major cruise companies, providing analysis in the weekly editions about general commission trends.
The companies have different reporting dates, hence the differences in the quarterly periods being reported. Here are the most recent numbers available from the two largest cruise companies.
Carnival Corporation
Commissions, Transportation and Other
Three months ended Feb.28/29, 2013 (first quarter):$617 million
Three months ended Feb. 28/29, 2012 (first quarter):$661 million
Percentage increase/decrease for first quarter between 2012 and 2013: - 6.7%
Twelve months ended November 30, 2012: $2.292 billion
Twelve months ended November 30, 2011: $2.261 billion
Percentage increase/decrease for yearly total between 2011 and 2012:- 6.5%
Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines
Commissions, Transportation and Other
Three months ended December 31, 2012 (fourth quarter): $295 million
Three months ended December 31, 2011 (fourth quarter):$315 million
Percentage increase/decrease for third quarter between 2011 and 2012: -6.3%
Twelve months ended December 31, 2012:$1.289 billion
Twelve months ended December 31, 2011: $1.300 billion
Percentage increase/decrease for yearly total between 2011 and 2012: - 0.8%