Lufthansa looks at shorter hours and state help to ease ‘immense’ fallout
Deutsche Lufthansa is looking into government support amid the “immense” fallout from the coronavirus, which could burden travel demand for months.
To avoid layoffs after slashing capacity by as much as 50%, the airline is examining the implementation of so-called shorttime work, the company said in a statement to Bloomberg on Sunday. The programme, known as “Kurzarbeit” in German, involves the government offsetting wages lost when companies are forced to temporarily halt work.
With some countries restricting flights from Germany, which has more than 800 cases, “the impact on our booking situation is immense”, CEO Carsten Spohr said in an internal memo to employees obtained by Bloomberg. “We must assume that it may take months before we will see first signs of stability,” he said in the message recorded on Friday.
Italy’s decision to restrict movement for a quarter of its population comes on top of the cancellation of large events such as the Geneva Motor Show and the ITB tourism fair in Berlin. The International Air Transport Association estimated carriers may lose as much as $113bn in ticket sales in 2020.
Chancellor Angela Merkel’s governing coalition was due to meet on Sunday evening in Berlin to map out a strategy to mitigate the damage from the epidemic on Europe’s largest economy. Looser rules for Kurzarbeit, which would make it easier for companies to apply and could increase payouts, are on the agenda.
Economy minister Peter Altmaier proposed expanding government loans and guarantees and implementing additional measures if demand and supply disruptions intensify because of the global epidemic. The government is also considering accelerating a planned tax cut.
EXPORT ECONOMY
The fallout from the virus risks damaging Germany’s exportorientated economy, which narrowly avoided recession in 2019 and is expected to struggle in 2020. China is Germany’s largest trading partner and German manufacturers, especially in the automotive industry, have deep ties with suppliers in northern Italy, the epicentre of the crisis in Europe.
On Friday, Lufthansa cited “drastic declines in bookings and numerous flight cancellations” in recent days, saying all its traffic is now affected.
The company acted after investors started to question its ability to withstand the downturn. The company’s five-year credit default swaps, which bondholders buy to protect their holdings against a potential default, more than tripled in the past 10 trading days to the most expensive level in seven years.
INCREASING LIQUIDITY
In his message to employees, Spohr said that Lufthansa has taken steps in the past few days to increase liquidity with the banks.
The airline is in talks with governments in Germany, Belgium,
Austria and Switzerland, as well as EU officials, to “reduce burdens on our industry”, he said, without elaborating.
Lufthansa has a credit rating of BBB at S&P Global Ratings, the second-lowest investmentgrade rating. Moody’s Investors Service rates it as Baa3, one level above junk.
The German airline group said on Sunday it is seeking ways to keep all employees on board during the crisis and is in talks with unions and its partners to avoid layoffs.
Proposals include potential short-time work. Lufthansa has already offered its employees voluntary measures, including unpaid leave and bringing forward holiday time.
“Our primary goal is to minimise losses and to secure the company’s liquidity,” said Spohr, adding that “numerous insolvencies” could hit the airline sector.
THE FALLOUT RISKS DAMAGING GERMANY’S EXPORT-ORIENTATED ECONOMY, WHICH NARROWLY AVOIDED RECESSION IN 2019