Air Traffic Under Closed Economic Policies Due To Hostile Situations: Downside Scenario

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Research conducted by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) forecasts the growth in air traffic to almost double in the next two decades, hitting close to 7.3 billion in 2034, driven by socioeconomic recovery, low air fares, and demographic changes. In our previous note, we discussed the potential upside in future air traffic growth on account of more liberalized economic policies, resulting in globalization and better standards of living.

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However, if the world continues to face terror attacks such as the recent serial bombings in Paris, growth in air traffic is likely to slow down, putting an end to the surging profits that airlines across the world have been enjoying due to depressed oil prices. The fear of such incidents puts pressure on air travel demand due to safety concerns, causing the aviation industry to suffer. Further, such incidents also prompt policy-makers to rethink globalization, causing severe distress to not only the citizens of the world but also air carriers.

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To make matters worse, after such acts of terrorism, the drop in air traffic is usually coupled with a surge in prices of commodities such as crude oil and gold due to the uncertain economic outlook. Although short-lived, these trends impact air carriers’ top line in the short term. In such a case, we can expect air traffic to only grow approximately 1.6% year-on-year, as compared to 4% in the base case.

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Such a scenario will negatively affect the aviation industry which after a long struggle, has recently bounced due to the impact of low oil prices. It could mean an end to the industry’s soaring profitability.

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Notes:

1) The purpose of these analyses is to help readers focus on a few important things. We hope such lean communication sparks thinking, and encourages readers to comment and ask questions on the comment section, or email content@trefis.com

2) Figures mentioned are approximate values to help our readers remember the key concepts more intuitively. For precise figures, please refer to our complete analysis for American Airlines

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