Transportation

Virus-hit airlines can fly without state thrust

12 Mar 2020

A U.S. ban on European travellers hammered airline stocks on both sides of the Atlantic. Washington doled out $15 bln of aid after the post-9/11 shutdown. But airlines are bigger now and fitter, letting them ride out turbulence. Regulatory leeway may suffice.

GM’s electric plan gives Musk a fresh challenge

4 Mar 2020

Boss Mary Barra unveiled an industry-leading 400-mile-range battery and $20 bln to invest in new tech by 2025. Sure, her estimated electric car sales will only have GM crawling towards its “zero emissions” goal. But it poses a more serious threat to Elon Musk’s Tesla.

Robo-taxis’ earnings horsepower

3 Mar 2020

General Motors reckons autonomous cabs can be a $1 trln market in the United States alone. That requires some heady assumptions about how cheap running such a service can be, and how many people can be persuaded to ditch car ownership for robo-rides.

Robo-taxi payday is a marathon self-drive away

3 Mar 2020

The prospect of mass adoption of autonomous cars has won Alphabet unit Waymo outside investors, helped boost Tesla’s stock and has GM positing a $5 trln global market. Robo-taxis could be big money-spinners. But aligning tech, costs, regulation and user readiness will take years.

Supply chain “tiger traps” demand better signposts

27 Feb 2020

The centuries-old business of lending to companies’ suppliers has become a 2.8 trln euro playground for financial and technological innovation. Tools that help firms to better use capital can flatter debt levels and exacerbate a liquidity crunch. Investors need more transparency.

Alstom’s M&A detour has lower chance of derailment

17 Feb 2020

The French train maker is paying $6.7 bln for Bombardier’s locomotive unit, after its preferred deal with Siemens was blocked. Bulking up can counter the threat of China’s CRRC. Success hinges on punchy synergies and a green light from the sticky antitrust signal box in Brussels.

HS2 green light makes UK less of a runaway train

11 Feb 2020

Boris Johnson has approved the controversial 107 bln pound rail link. As with a recent call on Huawei, the prime minister has chosen the least-bad strategic path. That should reassure foreign investors jittery at Brexit and recent state support plans for budget airline Flybe.

Ryanair’s budget can stretch to truer green boasts

5 Feb 2020

The low-cost carrier has been ticked off for promoting itself as a low-carbon emitter. True, its planes are getting more efficient, but it’s still a huge polluter. Ryanair’s profitability means boss Michael O’Leary can afford to match rival easyJet in paying to offset its CO2.

Atlantia charts tentative path to road truce

24 Jan 2020

The $19 bln infrastructure group’s new boss wants outsiders to invest into its units. These include embattled motorway operator ASPI, which risks losing a rich road concession after a bridge collapse. Opening ASPI’s capital to state investors offers a way out of the crisis.

GM’s investors school Tesla’s on self-driving hype

22 Jan 2020

Shares in Mary Barra’s $50 bln carmaker barely budged after it unveiled its autonomous vehicle, yet the potential of similar technology helped Elon Musk’s outfit to top $100 bln in market value. Considering true self-driving remains a long way off, GM’s owners are more realistic.

Alstom-Bombardier rail M&A would face faulty track

22 Jan 2020

The $11 bln French train maker and its Canadian rival are discussing a deal, Bloomberg reported. The former’s failed deal with Siemens posed more obvious EU antitrust issues, but Brussels may still balk. And synergies that rely on big job cuts in France will be politically toxic.

Rising fares squeeze Ryanair’s budget mantra

10 Jan 2020

The low-cost carrier lifted its full-year earnings forecast by 17% after a bumper holiday season. Boss Michael O’Leary can thank Thomas Cook’s demise and grounded 737 MAX planes for dearer tickets. But price hikes dent the halo of the self-appointed patron saint of cheap flights.

IAG dealmaking will outlast Willie Walsh

9 Jan 2020

The Irishman is disembarking after nine years at the helm of the BA and Iberia owner. The holding structure he led from its birth has been more successful than Air France-KLM and makes it easier for his successor to go shopping, say for a carrier that flies to South America.

Greta Thunberg will clog EU budget-airline engines

2 Jan 2020

Climate change will make regulators rethink free carbon credits and impose fuel taxes, hitting easyJet and Norwegian Air hard. More pain would come if the teen activist-inspired drop in Swedish air travel spreads across Europe. All in, 48 bln euros of industry value is at risk.

Travis Kalanick leaves Uber with no path to profit

24 Dec 2019

The ride-hailing app’s co-founder and ex-CEO is leaving the board after being sidelined and selling most of his shares. The $53 bln firm has moved on from his tumultuous leadership. But successor Dara Khosrowshahi has yet to work out how to remove the roadblocks to making money.

Boeing woes help Airbus customers more than Airbus

17 Dec 2019

The U.S. plane maker is suspending production of its grounded 737 MAX jet. Its European rival is already working at full capacity, but Airbus-reliant airlines, including easyJet, are in a sweep spot. They can keep expanding, while a capacity squeeze pushes up fares and margins.

Boeing 737 MAX cuts will speed margins descent

16 Dec 2019

Limited competition has insulated the $185 bln aircraft maker’s shares from the long grounding. The plane may fly again soon, but investors and CEO Dennis Muilenburg expect rising profitability. Newly zealous regulators, overstretched staff and economic winds say otherwise.

Chile protests give investors a rude awakening

21 Oct 2019

Latin America’s golden child erupted in violence this past weekend over a subway-fare hike. Its economy seems strong for an emerging market, but the unrest comes amid slowing growth, a weakened currency and a feeble copper market. Bondholders aren’t pricing in the risks.

Tata should make a U-turn on Jaguar Land Rover

9 Oct 2019

The Indian carmaker has clung to the marques since buying them for $2.3 bln in 2008. As auto sales plummet, though, Tata would be smarter to focus on its home market without the cash-burning JLR distraction. It also could pocket a tidy sum as a seller in a consolidating industry.

American cities risk becoming new weak data link

10 Sep 2019

Los Angeles’ trip info program for e-scooters and bikes is expanding to other towns. It manages congestion but also sparks privacy and hacking concerns. Contractors may also try to avoid a stricter California data law. Including ride hailing makes proper controls more critical.