FRANKFURT AM MAIN: Germany’s Lufthansa has warned that 30,000 jobs are under threat as it scaled down its winter schedule to levels not seen since the 1970s as demand for travel collapses because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The executive board of Europe’s largest airline said in a letter to employees that it was now “harder than ever” to predict how the aviation industry will develop, given there is little clarity over how long travel warnings would be applied or how quickly any recovery could come.
The use of video conferences may have also changed attitudes to travel against the backdrop of environmental prerogatives, while pressures on income could also weigh on tourism, the board wrote in the letter seen by AFP.
“No one can reliably predict these effects. We are determined nevertheless to preserve at least 100,000 of the Lufthansa Group’s 130,000 current jobs. Even if we do not currently have nearly enough jobs for a workforce of this size,” it added.
Lufthansa in September said more jobs would go beyond the 22,000 previously announced but did not give a clear figure then.
The German state in June stepped in to take a 25 percent stake in the airline, pumping nine billion euros of liquidity to prop up one of the nation’s most internationally visible companies.
The carrier – including its subsidiaries Swiss, Austrian, Brussels Airlines and Eurowings — said it would ground 125 more planes than planned in the winter, offering a maximum of a quarter of 2019’s capacity as it anticipates “less than a fifth” of the previous year’s passengers.
The season would be an “immense challenge,” it said.
“After a summer that gave us all reason for hope, we are now once again in a situation that is tantamount to a lockdown in effect.”
As the travel industry adapts to a post-pandemic world, the airline’s board said “we will be a smaller but also a more efficient Lufthansa. The road there will be long and arduous.”
The German flag carrier has succeeded in cutting its outflow of funds at the start of the pandemic from one million euros ($1.2 million) per hour to “only” one million euros every two hours, it said.
It will reduce administrative functions to around 30 percent, and shutter most of its main office in Frankfurt. Eurowings will entirely give up its office space in Dusseldorf.
The company will also keep employees on shorter work hours for a longer time — up to the end of February from mid-December previously.
Lufthansa reported an operating loss of 1.3 billion euros in preliminary third-quarter figures but the three months to the end of 2020 are looking far gloomier.
Lufthansa says 30,000 jobs at risk over coronavirus pandemic
https://arab.news/ykff9
Lufthansa says 30,000 jobs at risk over coronavirus pandemic
- Letter to employees says that it is now ‘harder than ever’ to predict how the aviation industry will develop
Saudi stocks rebalance after Kingdom opens market to global investors
- Foreign access reforms trigger short-term volatility while underlying market fundamentals hold
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s stock market experienced a volatile first week following a landmark decision to fully open the market to foreign investors—a move analysts view as essential to funding the Kingdom’s sweeping economic transformation plans.
The Tadawul All Share Index began the week with a sharp decline, falling 1.89 percent on Feb. 1, the same day new regulations eliminating key restrictions on international investment officially came into force. The index rebounded the following session and remained in positive territory for three consecutive days before slipping once more, ultimately ending the week down 1.34 percent.
Ownership data from Tadawul as of Feb. 1 indicated that foreign non-strategic investors reduced their holdings in nearly half of the companies listed on the TASI. An analysis conducted by Al-Eqtisadiah’s Financial Analysis Unit showed that foreign ownership declined in 120 firms, increased in 97 others, and remained unchanged across the remainder. Despite these shifts, the total number of shares held by foreign investors showed no overall change.
Speaking to Arab News, economist Talat Hafiz addressed the initial volatility in the TASI, explaining: “Stock markets in the Kingdom and globally naturally experience fluctuations driven by profit-taking and price corrections.”
He added that the index’s decline and subsequent recovery “appears to be primarily the result of technical and sentiment-related factors rather than a direct reaction to the opening of the market to foreign investors.”
Hafiz emphasized that this was particularly evident given that foreign participation in the Saudi market is not entirely new, having previously existed under alternative regulatory structures.
The market turbulence coincided with sweeping reforms enacted by the Capital Market Authority and announced in January. These measures included the removal of the restrictive Qualified Foreign Investor framework, which had imposed a $500 million minimum asset requirement, as well as the elimination of swap agreements. The reforms aim to attract billions of dollars in fresh investment while improving overall market liquidity.
Hafiz noted that an initial surge of foreign capital was widely expected to generate short-term volatility as portfolios were rebalanced and liquidity dynamics adjusted. However, the rapid recovery of the index suggests that the market’s underlying fundamentals remained strong and that investor confidence was not significantly undermined.
Earlier in January, experts had told Arab News that the reforms could unlock as much as $10 billion in new foreign inflows. Tony Hallside, CEO of STP Partners, described the move as a pivotal evolution, signaling that the Kingdom is committed to building the most accessible, liquid, and globally integrated financial markets in the region.
Hafiz reinforced this optimistic outlook, stating that broader market access is likely to yield positive effects by boosting liquidity, widening participation, and supporting overall market recovery—ultimately contributing to greater long-term stability once near-term adjustments ease.
He said: “TASI’s swift rebound reflects the market’s constructive response to increased openness and deeper investor participation.”
Hafiz said he does not believe the market opening is primarily intended to function as a conventional financing channel. Instead, he argued that its broader objective lies in the internationalization of the Saudi market, a goal underscored by its inclusion in major global indices.
He explained that attracting foreign capital should be understood less as a short-term funding solution and more as a structural reform aimed at strengthening market depth, efficiency, transparency, and global integration.
The Saudi economist added that while increased foreign participation can indirectly support Vision 2030 by enhancing liquidity and reducing the cost of capital, the opening of the market is “not designed as a direct mechanism to revive or fast-track projects that may have faced funding constraints.”
Rather, it creates a more resilient, globally connected financial ecosystem that can sustainably support long-term development ambitions, according to Hafiz.
As the market continues to stabilize, investors and observers are monitoring which sectors are expected to attract the largest share of investment in the coming weeks and months.
Hafiz told Arab News that foreign investment is expected to initially focus on companies operating in strategically significant, high-growth sectors such as healthcare, transportation, and technology, in addition to mining, energy, and telecommunications.
He added that experienced foreign investors are likely to gravitate toward firms demonstrating strong financial disclosure practices, sound corporate governance, adherence to environmental, social and governance standards, and a track record of consistent dividend payouts.
