Latest news with #Lufthansa
Reuters
a day ago
- Business
- Reuters
European shares end lower as investors assess mixed earnings; focus on trade talks
July 21 (Reuters) - European shares ended a choppy session in the red on Monday, as investors weighed a mixed bag of corporate earnings and keenly awaited the outcome of ongoing trade negotiations between the U.S. and the European Union. The pan-European STOXX 600 index (.STOXX), opens new tab closed 0.1% lower, as a drop in healthcare stocks such as Roche (ROG.S), opens new tab and Novonordisk ( opens new tab offset gains in mining companies (.SXPP), opens new tab. Traders were gearing up for a week filled with corporate updates in both Europe and the U.S. and will scrutinize company reports for any clues on the impact trade uncertainty has had on profitability and consumer demand. On Monday, Stellantis ( opens new tab said it expects a net loss of 2.3 billion euros ($2.68 billion) for the first half of 2025 as the automaker faced the dual challenge of revamping its product ranges while also dealing with the impact of U.S. tariffs. Shares of the automaker were volatile throughout the day and settled about 1.5% higher. Ryanair (RYA.I), opens new tab jumped 5.7% after Europe's largest low-cost carrier reported that its quarterly profit more than doubled. Other airline stocks such as Lufthansa ( opens new tab and EasyJet (EZJ.L), opens new tab gained about 1% each. Meanwhile, trade negotiations were high on the radar as diplomats said that the EU is exploring wide-ranging "anti-coercion" measures which would let the bloc target U.S. services or curb access to public tenders in the absence of a deal. U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened 30% duties on imports from Europe if no agreement is signed before the August 1 deadline. "The question ultimately boils down to whether the EU can swallow an unbalanced outcome which is tilted in favour of the U.S., or whether Trump would accept some form of EU countermeasures without ratcheting up tariffs further," said Henry Cook, senior economist at MUFG bank. "The landing ground for a deal still looks small and there is plenty of risk that things could go south." The benchmark STOXX 600 has recovered all its losses from the April selloff when Trump slapped tariffs on world economies. However, trade ambiguities and their impact on corporates have kept investors wary. The prevailing uncertainty had investors also flocking to safe-havens including gold and European sovereign bonds on Monday. EUR/GVD Among stocks, Delivery Hero ( opens new tab logged its biggest one-day jump of over 16% in more than a year. On Friday, Prosus had offered to slash its stake in the German company and give up its board seat to address EU concerns over its 4.1 billion euro ($4.78 billion) Just Eat Takeaway ( opens new tab deal, according to sources. Miners Glencore (GLEN.L), opens new tab, Anglo American (AAL.L), opens new tab and Antofagasta (ANTO.L), opens new tab rose between 3% and 5%, tracking a rise in industrial metal prices after China vowed to stabilise its industrial growth, and on hopes for more stimulus. IRN/ Markets also await the ECB's policy decision later this week with traders pricing in no change in interest rates.
Skift
5 days ago
- Business
- Skift
Lufthansa CEO Warns of Tax Burden on German Aviation
A CEO complaining about higher taxes is no surprise. But our research shows on capacity shows a significant contraction in Germany's airline market. Lufthansa Airlines CEO Jens Ritter warned this week on LinkedIn that Germany's soaring aviation taxes are damaging the country's air travel market, now one of the few major economies where airline capacity still lags pre-pandemic levels. In the post on Wednesday, Ritter said government-imposed taxes and fees now make up nearly 30% of the cost of a ticket from Germany, with total charges on a single flight from Frankfurt topping €4,600 — far higher than in Madrid or Istanbul. 'No other European country burdens its air
Reuters
6 days ago
- Business
- Reuters
IAG says it would invest in Portugal's TAP, expand Lisbon hub
LISBON, July 16 (Reuters) - British Airways owner IAG (ICAG.L), opens new tab said on Wednesday it would invest in Portuguese flag carrier TAP and expand its main Lisbon hub if IAG won the race for a stake in TAP's partial privatisation. Portugal relaunched the long-delayed privatisation of TAP last week, aiming to sell a 44.9% stake to an airline that could bring global scale and competitiveness, with an additional 5% to be offered to TAP employees. IAG is one of three major European airline groups to have shown interest in the privatisation and has had meetings with the government over the past year. The two others are Lufthansa ( opens new tab and Air France-KLM ( opens new tab. "IAG welcomes the ... privatisation process. We believe TAP would flourish as part of IAG's distinctive and proven model - one that focuses on investing in airlines and expanding strategic hubs," a company spokesperson told Reuters. TAP's most attractive assets are its connections to Brazil, Portuguese-speaking African countries, and the United States from its Lisbon hub, which the government wants to keep and expand. One of the criticisms that some analysts make of the potential IAG bid is that the Lisbon hub is very close to the Madrid base of IAG-owned Spanish airline Iberia and, in the long term, IAG could divert routes from Lisbon to Madrid, reducing the importance of the hub in Portugal. But the spokesperson said that Dublin-based Aer Lingus, which has been part of IAG since 2015, has doubled its long-haul capacity despite its closeness to British Airways' London hub, giving "a compelling example of what can be achieved" with TAP.
Toronto Sun
7 days ago
- Business
- Toronto Sun
OPINION: Competition Bureau right that Canada should open skies for competition
In this file photo taken on November 08, 2021 The logo of German airline Lufthansa is seen on airplanes standing on the apron at the "Franz-Josef-Strauss" airport in Munich, southern Germany, on November 8, 2021. Photo by CHRISTOF STACHE / AFP via Getty Images Here's a statement few Canadians will disagree with: Air travel in Canada is expensive and frustrating. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account But there's hope. According to a recent report from the Competition Bureau, a law enforcement agency that reports to the federal government, the key solution is to increase competition among airlines. Government policies are the primary reason for the lack of airline competition. Specifically, excessive regulatory barriers and restrictions on foreign airlines limit choice and increase ticket prices. Currently, the federal government prohibits foreign airlines from operating domestic routes within Canada's borders. For example, a German airline such as Lufthansa is permitted to fly from Frankfurt to Toronto, but is barred from flying passengers from Toronto to another Canadian city. The result? There's little competitive pressure for Canadian airlines to lower their prices for domestic air travel. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The European Union offers a stark contrast. After the EU removed restrictions on member-state airlines to operate in all EU countries, low-cost carriers such as Ryanair entered the market, flight frequencies increased and airfares dropped 34%. The Competition Bureau examined the EU model and said Canada should relax restrictions on foreign airlines to improve service quality and bring down ticket prices. Our recent study at Fraser Institute similarly suggests the federal government negotiate deals with other countries to allow foreign airlines to operate within Canada in exchange for allowing Canadian airlines to operate in those countries — a win-win for Canadian consumers and Canadian airlines. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. But the federal government should not stop there. High taxes and fees comprise a large portion (25%-35%) of airfare costs, driving up ticket prices. In Canada, fees for airport improvement, security, landing and other charges are all largely uncompetitive with peer countries. And Canadian fuel taxes and sales taxes drive prices up further. Why are the fees so high? While several government policies play a part, Canada's outdated airport ownership structure remains a key factor. The federal government owns the land upon which our large airports are built and charges the not-for-profit airport authorities rent (as high as 12% of airport revenue). In 2023, the government received $487 million in rent charges from airports. In response, the airports levy fees on passengers to recoup these costs. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Improving the policy environment to reduce taxes and fees to levels more competitive with peer countries should be one lever Ottawa pulls to address sky-high airfares. Moreover, Canada should also — based on the successful airport ownership structures in Europe, Australia and New Zealand — sell its remaining interests in airport leases and allow for-profit organizations to own and operate airports in Canada. Finally, Ottawa should ease the regulatory burden on the airline industry while maintaining strong safety standards. The United States undertook a successful deregulation effort in the 1970s and 1980s, which helped create more competition and choice, lower airfares and safety improvements. Canadians face high airfares and have few choices to fly within in Canada, mainly due to bad government policy. It's past time for Ottawa to make bold reforms to open up competition and reduce travel costs for Canadians. Jake Fuss and Alex Whalen are economists at the Fraser Institute NFL Editorial Cartoons Toronto & GTA Toronto & GTA Columnists
Business Insider
15-07-2025
- Automotive
- Business Insider
Airlines are inspecting Boeing 787 fuel switches after the first Air India crash report put them in the spotlight
Numerous airlines are inspecting the fuel-cutoff switches on their Boeing planes after investigators released their initial findings into the tragedy of Air India Flight 171. On June 12, the London-bound Boeing 787 crashed 32 seconds after taking off from Ahmedabad Airport in India. All but one of the 242 people on board were killed, as well as 19 on the ground. In a preliminary report published last Friday, India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau said that seconds after liftoff, the fuel was cut off to both engines, immediately shutting them down. The fuel-cutoff switches have a stop-lock mechanism that requires them to be pulled outward before they can be moved up or down, preventing accidental movement. Brackets also guard them from being mistakenly knocked. The report said cockpit audio showed one of the pilots asking the other why he had cut off the fuel, but he responded that he had not done so. Friday's report also references a 2018 bulletin from the Federal Aviation Administration. It advised inspections on several Boeing models, including the 787, after receiving reports that some 737s had fuel control switches installed with the locking feature disengaged. "If the locking feature is disengaged, the switch can be moved between the two positions without lifting the switch during transition," it said. "Inadvertent operation of the switch could result in an unintended consequence, such as an in-flight engine shutdown." Air India had not carried out inspections as the bulletin was advisory and not mandatory, the preliminary report said. Since Friday, numerous airlines have begun such inspections, but no issues have yet been found. A source familiar with the matter told Business Insider that Air India began carrying out voluntary checks of the fuel control switches on its 787s and 737s over the weekend. About half of the 787s and almost all of the 737s have been inspected so far, with no problems found, the person added. The checks are expected to be completed by Wednesday. India's aviation regulator on Monday ordered the country's airlines to inspect the fuel control locking feature in accordance with the 2018 advisory. A spokesperson for Germany's Lufthansa told BI that checks had been carried out on the fuel control switches on the Boeing 787s of Lufthansa and its subsidiary Austrian Airlines, "as a precautionary measure." "No findings were made," they added. United Airlines declined to comment on whether it was conducting inspections. Singapore Airlines and Japan Airlines told Reuters that they were carrying out precautionary checks on the switches. Neither immediately responded to requests for comment sent by BI outside local working hours. The news agency reported that South Korea's transport ministry ordered the country's airlines to inspect fuel control switches, in line with the FAA's 2018 bulletin. "At that time (2018), it was a recommended measure and was not fully inspected," the government's statement reportedly said. Several outlets also reported that the FAA issued a continued airworthiness notification to the international community (CANIC) late Friday, saying it does not believe its 2018 advisory means any planes are unsafe. Friday's preliminary report only establishes the known facts rather than analysing the cause. It did not issue any recommendations to operators of Boeing 787s or GE engines. In an internal memo obtained by several outlets, Air India CEO Campbell Wilson said the report "provided both greater clarity and opened additional questions." A final report is expected within 12 months of the incident.
