Office-sharing firm WeWork Inc. on Monday reported a smaller loss in its first quarterly result since going public last month, as a rebound in demand for office space owing to easing COVID-19-related restrictions in the United States helped boost occupancy.
WeWork said occupancy in its offices, which cater to both individual and corporate members, was at 59 per cent as of Sept. 30, up 9 per cent from a year earlier. Total memberships were up at 578,000 from 542,000.
The pandemic has also prompted many companies to adopt a more hybrid model, where employees have the flexibility to work from offices, co-working spaces, public areas and home, partly helping Softbank-backed WeWork.
The company has attempted to cut losses by exiting unprofitable leases and selling non-core assets after finally succeeding in going public through a merger with a blank-cheque firm in a US$9-billion deal.
It reported a net loss of US$844.3-million in the third quarter ended Sept. 30, compared with a loss of US$999.5-million a year earlier.
The loss also included one-time expenses of US$262-million, mainly from depreciation and impairment of assets.
WeWork said it ended the third quarter with cash and unfunded cash commitments of US$2.3-billion.
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