People walk through the newly opened expansion on Terminal 2 at Incheon International Airport, Dec. 3. Yonhap

Incheon International Airport expects to fully recover to pre-pandemic levels in terms of cargo and air passengers by the end of the year, Incheon International Airport Corp. (IIAC), the operator of the country's largest international air transport hub, said Wednesday.

"Due to the complete end of the COVID-19 pandemic, the airport expects to see the number of air passengers this year drastically increase by 26.9 percent compared to last year," Lee Sang-yong, senior public relations manager at IIAC, said during a press conference at the company's headquarters in Incheon.

By the end of 2024, IIAC expects around 71.2 million air passengers will have passed through the airport this year, which is a 26.9 percent jump from last year. The 2019 figure was 71.1 million.

The increase is due to soaring air travel demand during the summer and Chuseok holiday seasons, mainly from and to neighboring Japan.

In 2025, the airport expects to receive some 73 million travelers.

Amid the global recovery in travel and tourism, the airport also expects a full-scale recovery in cargo transport at 2.9 million tons this year.

The company said its annual turnover will reach 2.5 trillion won ($1.7 billion) with a net profit of around 528 billion won, which are 20 percent and 7 percent increases from last year, respectively.

"IIAC has accomplished a turnaround in net profit for the second consecutive year," Lee said, explaining that sales were close to 2019 levels due to an increase in travelers, but the recovery of net income has been delayed due to higher labor costs and interest rate hikes.

Following this momentum, the company is optimistic about reaching a record-high turnover surpassing 2.9 trillion won next year.

In 2024, IIAC completed its four-stage construction project, including the expansion of Terminal 2. Next year, the airport operator aims to focus on a comprehensive improvement project for Terminal 1.

The company will also complete the relocation of airline terminals following the integration of Korean Air and Asiana Airlines.

"Next year, the company will steadily realize digital transformation, the establishment of the best infrastructure and development of new air routes to innovate airport operations," IIAC CEO Lee Hag-jae said.