Bloomberg Lunar New Year may be more than two months away but one Chinese fuel supplier is already gearing up for an expected surge in air travel. China Aviation Oil (CAO) is seeking to import jet fuel for January delivery in its first buy tender since May, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The move by CAO, one of the ...

Bloomberg Europe’s airlines will struggle more than competitors elsewhere to end losses next year as they’re held back by higher expenses and their dependence on overseas routes, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA). The region’s carriers should achieve seat-occupancy levels averaging 63.8% for the whole of 2020, increasing to 65.6% in 2021. That’s still below the projected break-even ...

Bloomberg Francesca’s Holdings Corp is preparing to file for bankruptcy, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The boutique-style women’s clothing chain could file as soon as next week, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the process isn’t public. The plan could still change. Representatives for Francesca’s didn’t respond to multiple phone and email requests ...

Bloomberg The coronavirus pandemic and its devastating impact on global aviation and economic growth isn’t swaying Megawide Construction Corp from its 109 billion peso ($2.3 billion) plan to upgrade Manila’s airport, the main gateway to the Philippines. The company proposed a 10-year plan to double annual capacity at the aging and overcrowded Ninoy Aquino International Airport to 65 million passengers, ...

Bloomberg Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon is keeping up pressure on the UK government for another independence referendum, yet she also faces the task of keeping her party patiently united behind her approach. As the Scottish National Party (SNP) holds its annual conference this weekend, the 50-year-old leader’s position could hardly look stronger: there’s now clear majority support for breaking ...

Bloomberg Ethiopian federal troops began an artillery offensive against the city of Mekelle as the government seeks to break the hold of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) on the region. TPLF leader Debretsion Gebremichael confirmed that the government offensive is under way. There were no immediate reports of casualties or specific targets being hit, according to two senior United ...

Bloomberg Huawei Technologies Co founder Ren Zhengfei called the sale of its Honor budget smartphone division a “clean break” that should free it from US restrictions and create a new powerhouse in the world’s largest mobile arena. Ren, blasting Trump administration tactics to contain his company, assured employees in a memo Honor will rapidly resume production after regaining access to ...

Bloomberg The World Economic Forum (WEF) is looking at sites in countries less affected by Covid-19 than Switzerland to replace Lucerne for the meeting scheduled to take place next May, according to the Schweiz am Wochenende newspaper. The Swiss newspaper, which didn’t say the source of the information, also published an interview with WEF founder, Klaus Schwab, who said the ...

Bloomberg The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) killed a proposal to allow in-flight voice calls via mobile phones, ending its examination of an idea that evoked fears of air rage from passengers trapped beside jabbering seat mates. The idea drew “strong opposition” from pilots and flight attendants, the agency said in a four-paragraph order. The FCC in 2013 proposed allowing ...

Bloomberg Boris Johnson defended his decision to put most of England into the highest levels of pandemic restrictions even as the rate of infection across the UK fell to its lowest level since mid-August. Leading members of Johnson’s Conservative Party have said the government’s new three-tier system to contain the coronavirus when the national lockdown ends next week is too ...