Overview
Asia-Pacific airlines lag U.S. in 2015
The aviation industry’s year had a good start. Creditratings agency, Moody’s, upgraded its outlook for the global airline industry from “stable” to “positive” on the back of declining fuel prices. The U.S. carriers are forecast to most benefit from the falling oil price. Their high load factors combined with increased demand mean there is less incentive to reduce fares, while growing competition and subsequent pressure on yields are likely to curtail profits at Asia Pacific airlines.
Moody’s upgraded “operating profit margins for the industry to 12%-14% in 2015 and 11.5%-13.5% in 2016”, which is likely to result in $35 billion of savings across the global aviation industry after the effects of hedging and the weakening of currencies against the greenback. Read More »
Airline News
Rules set to change in Indonesian aviation
At a parliamentary hearing last week, Indonesian transport minister, Ignasius Jonan, proposed significant changes to the country’s aviation safety standards following the loss of Indonesia AirAsia flight QZ8501 in the Java Sea on December 28. Read More »
Airline News
Emirates worth $40 billion, takes Amedeo A380s
Emirates Airline would be worth $40 billion if it went public, said founding chief executive, Sir Maurice Flanagan (86), more than four times its net worth in 2012. “The last figures I saw had Emirates worth at something like $40 billion if it went public. Emirates has overtaken Delta as the second biggest airline in the world. Read More »
Airline News
Etihad Airways-protégé Alitalia has unveiled plans to return the carrier to profitability by 2017 through an improved network and closer cooperation with its new 49% shareholder on global routes. Read More »
Airline News
Shares in Chinese low-cost carrier, Spring Airlines, surged more than 40% on its debut on the Shanghai Stock Exchange last week. Mainland investors scrambled to buy into the carrier in the belief it will go far because of its cost-cutting and innovative strategies. Read More »
Airline News
A month ago, low-cost carrier, SpiceJet, one of India’s three large private airlines, seemed to be on the same trajectory to Vijay Mallya’s Kingfisher Airlines, the premium full-service carrier brought down by heavy debts in 2012. Read More »
Financial Round Up
Kazakhstan-based Air Astana, the newest member of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA), reported a net profit of $19.3 million in 2014, down 62% compared with a year earlier. Read More »
Short Takes
AIRLINES: Business Air, a Bangkok-based charter airline, has had its licence revoked after it was unable to settle overdue debt, leaving over 700 passengers stranded. Read More »
