Capital Calls: Disney turns screws on Netflix 10 Aug 2022 Concise views on global finance: The Magic Kingdom now has as many subscribers to its streaming products as Netflix. It needs all the fairy dust it can get ahead of a looming price war.
Cathay Pacific charts hopeful course for Hong Kong 18 Jul 2022 Huge capacity cuts and a bailout put a lid on debt as quarantine rules keep its home city isolated. Its shares, better performing than Singaporean and Western peers, imply the airline and the Asian hub will make a quick turnaround. But it faces a harder slog back to normal.
Americans’ urge for the open road knows few bounds 1 Jul 2022 Travelers book flights for convenience – and in theory rising gas prices help that trend. But time is money, too, and plane delays are increasing. Assign a reasonable value for an airport setback, and it suggests holiday travelers should blare "Holiday Road."
Airlines M&A plays regulator roulette 27 Jun 2022 Budget carrier Frontier raised its offer for peer Spirit to $2.6 bln. That’s just enough to compete with rival JetBlue’s bid. Now shareholders have to weigh merger-skeptical regulators. It’s not just a calculation of who can win, but what the buyer will give up for it to happen.
Spirit investors should pick price over certainty 15 Jun 2022 The budget airline’s shareholders have the choice of a $2.2 bln cash-and-stock offer from Frontier, or a much higher but less secure offer from JetBlue. Even adjusted for the likelihood of failure, JetBlue’s offer looks better. Frontier’s choice: pay more, or get bumped.
Aeroflot’s travails are metaphor for Russia 9 Jun 2022 Sanctions have curtailed the state-run carrier’s routes and grounded its jets. Moscow will underpin a $3 bln rights issue by raiding its rainy-day fund. As its economic isolation deepens, more oil dollars will have to be diverted to struggling domestic enterprises.
Spirit shareholders are flying without a pilot 16 May 2022 JetBlue launched a $3.3 bln hostile, all-cash offer for the ultra-cheap carrier. That’s almost 60% more than Spirit’s agreed cash-and-stock deal with Frontier. A JetBlue tie-up could face more antitrust scrutiny. But without an open process, Spirit shareholders are on their own.
Capital Calls: Business travel, Adidas China woes 6 May 2022 Concise views on global finance: British Airways owner IAG faces stormy UK skies; Chinese lockdowns and boycotts are slowing down the German sneaker maker.
Capital Calls: JetBlue antitrust risk haunts Spirit 2 May 2022 Concise views on global finance: The low-cost U.S. airline rejected its midmarket rival's takeover offer. Spirit reckons that even a price 50% higher than its agreed sale to Frontier doesn't compensate for Washington's anti-merger stance.
Stranded jets are least of plane lessors’ problems 14 Apr 2022 Big fleet-owners like AerCap may have to write off $10 bln of planes trapped due to Russian sanctions. Ultimately, though, insurers should cover their losses. A bigger brake on the aircraft-leasing industry’s rapid ascent is the rising cost of debt from jittery lenders.
Antitrust worries can ground JetBlue’s Spirit bid 6 Apr 2022 The U.S. airline’s shock $3.6 bln bid for its ultra-budget rival offers few cost savings and could lead to higher fares. That increases the risk that competition regulators – or Spirit’s board – stop it getting off the ground. For skeptical shareholders, that would be a relief.
Capital Calls: ABB’s car chargers, Airport M&A 10 Feb 2022 Concise views on global finance: The Swiss engineering group’s listing plans come at an unfortunate moment; Britain’s John Menzies takes a risk with rejection of “opportunistic” approach from Kuwaiti air services group NAS.
Capital Calls: Continental, Harley-Davidson 8 Feb 2022 Concise views on global finance: German car-parts maker Continental may spin off its self-driving unit, while the iconic maker of motorbikes has turned supply shortages to its own advantage.
Frontier and Spirit are flying into the wind 7 Feb 2022 The two U.S. budget airlines say their $5 bln deal would help passengers, workers and shareholders by creating cut-price alternatives to pricier carriers. That may be a stretch for merger-averse regulators. And the market’s muted response suggests their logic is running on fumes.
Capital Calls: Wizz investor sides with workers 7 Feb 2022 Concise views on global finance: Denmark’s AkademikerPension picks an odd moment to offload its stake in the $6 bln budget airline over a lack of union representation among its staff.
MSC gives Lufthansa cover for Italian raid 27 Jan 2022 The shipping giant and German carrier want to buy Alitalia successor ITA, a boon for Italian taxpayers. A reported 1.2 bln euro price tag will surprise Berlin, which retains a 14% stake from a 2020 airline bailout. If MSC does the heavy lifting, the swoop is easier to justify.
Flying car SPAC paves pristine highway in the sky 22 Dec 2021 Embraer’s airborne taxi unit Eve is going public by merging with Zanite Acquisition. It ticks every box for a blank-check deal in the red-hot electric vehicle market, including a long list of pre-orders and blue-chip backers. The only problem is that its market doesn’t exist yet.
Airlines’ net-zero pledges fly on fumes 1 Nov 2021 Aviation accounts for only 2.5% of global emissions and technologies to help operators decarbonise appear numerous. Yet batteries, hydrogen, biofuels and e-kerosene all have big practical challenges and are too pricey. The risk for airlines is anxious states clipping their wings.
Cox: Arrivederci Alitalia, you won’t be missed 14 Oct 2021 After 74 years, Italy’s once-glamorous national carrier disappears for good tonight. The airline had become the butt of bad jokes and a dent to Italian pride. Poor management was a factor in its demise. But there are reasons to celebrate Alitalia’s end, and ITA’s new beginning.
Air India sale gives Narendra Modi reform miles 12 Oct 2021 The prime minister’s government will collect only $400 mln from selling the indebted national carrier back to the Tatas. If anyone can restore the company to its globetrotting glory, it’s them. Either way, the deal is a welcome symbol of India’s new embrace of private markets.