TransAsia Airways

Taiwan election result to benefit Taiwan-China services as airlines expand services for New Year

This weekend’s re-election of a Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) President in the Republic of China (Taiwan) is good news for airlines operating between Taiwan and the People's Republic of China.

Since non-stop cross-straits services began in 2009, airlines from both sides have profited from a relaxation in access, with steep gains in direct city pair operations.

There had been concerns that a loss by President Ma Ying-jeou would mean his liberal attitude to relations with the mainland would be reversed under a Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government. It was President Ma’s influence that helped remove restrictions on direct flights.

The KMT’s win should more or less mean business as usual – and a continuation of the expansion of cross-straits air travel.

TransAsia expanding reach with listing on main board of Taiwan Stock Exchange

TransAsia Airways, Taiwan’s first private-owned airline company, officially listed on the main board of the Taiwan Stock Exchange on 01-Nov-2011, gaining strong interest from investors and becoming the third carrier to be listed in Taiwan after China Airlines and EVA Air.

The IPO followed quickly after the carrier announced it had attracted two strategic investors by selling 50 million shares to Paradigm Transportation Holdings BV and 1.3 million shares to Maurice Savart.  Chairman Vincent Lin in an interview with Taipei Times at the end of Oct-2011 commented that TransAsia has “proven itself to be a company that deserves the attention of investors, based on the company’s performance over the first half of this year”. He added that there is a large growth room for TransAsia in the coming years as it aggressively expands its international network and benefits from strong cross-Strait demand.

TransAsia President Andy Chen added that the carrier has benefited from its regional air carrier position and branding, which has “helped us establish a clearer picture when managing the company”.  However, the profitable carrier is expecting a lower profit this year compared to its TWD918 million (USD31 million) profit in 2010 due to rising price of fuel, which has so far increased 28.2% compared to last year.

TransAsia and UNI Air lead Taiwan's second tier airlines into new markets

Taiwan's airlines are gearing up for a boom in visitors from Mainland China. Taiwan’s Transportation and Communications Minister Mao Chikuo has urged Taiwanese carriers to purchase more aircraft before the number of Mainland tourists permitted to visit the island increases from 5 million presently to 10 million p/a over the next three to four years. While the demand will no doubt be captured predominantly by the nation's two major carriers, EVA Air and China Airlines, some of the nation's smaller carriers are also targeting rapid expansion in the months and years ahead on cross-Strait and near-international routes.

Paris 2011: TransAsia orders six A321neo aircraft to support cross-Strait and international growth

TransAsia Airways placed a firm order with Airbus for six A321neo aircraft on the second day of the Paris Air Show on 21-Jun-2011, a day which saw the manufacturer sign orders for 121 passenger jets with four different airline and leasing companies.

Air China tops airline Enterprise Value rankings; Delta second; no LCCs in top 10

It would appear China has already reached its aim of creating a world-beating "super carrier" – at least in terms of financial size. Air China is by far the world’s biggest airline, based on a current ranking of listed airlines’ Enterprise Values (EV) assembled by the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation (CAPA).

So you think you know your airline market capitalisation: Part 3

The first part of this three-part report on airline market capitalisations described how Air China is valued more on the stock exchange than US carriers United-Continental, JetBlue, Hawaiian Air, AirTran, US Airways, American Airlines, Republic Airways and Skywest combined. In this final section, CAPA reviews some further interesting facts from the equity investment world.