[ad_1]

The post Skal Bangkok lunch with future Thailand PM hopeful appeared first on TD (Travel Daily Media) Travel Daily.

Korn Chatikavanij announces his plans to cancel 90-day reporting, introduce integrated casino resorts to Thailand, and pursue the LGBTQ+ market

Skal International Bangkok packed the house with future Thailand PM hopeful Korn Chatikavanij speaking candidly on a wide range of tourism related topics. It was an exceptional event which took place yesterday, Tuesday, June 14, 2022, at the Hyatt Regency Bangkok Sukhumvit hotel. The Business Luncheon Talk with the former Minister of Finance was well supported by industry influencers.

The Skal Bangkok networking lunch proved to be a real eye-opener as former finance minister Korn Chatikavanij discussed inflation, the economy, integrated resorts, LGBTQ+ tourism, and the Surat Thani/Koh Samui bridge project.

No topics were off the table at this dynamic talk as Khun Korn offered unique insights and sage advice for Thailand’s tourism leaders.

Khun Korn at the beginning of his presentation identified that global economies were not doing well.

Thailand was no exception he said, “We’re not doing great…”

Post-Covid tourism has been badly hit. “It is the most challenging industry of them all,” he said. Tourism is returning quickly, however.

The challenges now for the economy are low growth coupled with higher inflation. He feels that inflation will lead to an increase in interest rates. The market he says is expecting an initial increase between 50 basis points up to one percent and later a further one percent increase.

Korn went onto discuss inflationary pressures such as the increase in household debt – already the highest ever at 90% of GDP – which will have a longer negative effect on the recovery of the economy. However, he believes that public debt currently at 70% of GDP is sustainable and allows fiscal space as there are still resources available to borrow further funds for the government to inject into the economy.

He believes though that the oil fund which is currently costing Thailand 20 billion baht per month, with a weaker baht touching 35 baht to the US dollar, is unsustainable and will have the long-term effect of higher fuel prices in Thailand long after global prices begin to decline.

Khun Korn said that there would be an election coming up as early as March or April of next year 2023 – nobody expects the current government to survive for another term, and probably parliament will be dissolved after the APEC meeting in November 2022. Thailand holds the chair as host.

Khun Korn went onto discuss property equity funds as a way to inject capital into businesses with property assets. He talked about his plans NOT to bring back property taxes immediately to 100% (they were dropped to 10% due to the pandemic). He prefers instead to look at a 5-year step-by-step program increasing gradually, only as businesses recover.

Speaking of immigration matters, he announced that he would be in favor to abolish the 90-day reporting for long-stay residents of Thailand.

He also announced that in order to look at new investments and opportunities for the travel and tourism industry, we cannot expect a quick return of the 40 million tourists that were recorded pre-Covid in 2019, but we do need to work harder to make sure we have a successful tourism industry.

As a political party we recognize that Thais like to gamble; they gamble in illegal establishments or are traveling to neighboring countries where casinos have been legalized and successfully introduced as integrated resorts. Khun Korn believes we should have our own, and this will make Thailand very competitive for this kind of business. There is already a subcommittee discussing this in parliament.

Attitudes have changed, and we must look for regional opportunities to develop legal casinos and capture a part of the gambling tourism market he said.

He also discussed the social tolerance of Thailand and the compassion of Thai people towards the LGBTQ+ community and that globally it is estimated that the travel and tourism spend of this sector is worth US$4.5 trillion. He suggested that Thailand should go after 5 percent of this market which would attract 7.9 trillion baht annually in additional tourism revenue. Khun Korn also said that Thailand is currently discussing legalizing gay marriage. Thailand is socially supportive of same-sex marriages, he said, it’s just that Thai law has not caught up.

He believes supporting this will send out a positive image of Thailand to the LGBTQ+ community. The same goes for long-term residents who effectively have to report to the police every 3 months. It sends out the wrong messages and actually can easily be rectified without the need for 3-month reports.

The idea of building a bridge linking Koh Samui to the mainland in Surat Thani was raised when he recently visited Koh Samui. Khun Korn thinks it is a great idea with positive financial benefits, saying it would also break the transportation monopoly. A careful environmental impact study will be needed which can be done.

Khun Korn believes the bridge will assist smaller hotels to have more access to clientele, it will benefit the 2 airports on the mainland (Surat Thani and Nakon Si Thammarat), and it will raise standards of living he said.

Click to read the full story: Skal Bangkok lunch with future Thailand PM hopeful | eTurboNews

The post Skal Bangkok lunch with future Thailand PM hopeful appeared first on Travel Daily.

[ad_2]

Source link

[ad_1]

The post How to Secure a Sustainable Future for Aviation appeared first on TD (Travel Daily Media) Travel Daily.

Climate change is one of the biggest challenges of our times. Aviation, as strategic European infrastructure, will continue to play a vital role with regards to ensuring safe mobility across the continent but it must significantly reduce its environmental footprint.

Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF) will be an essential enabler for this and deserves priority attention, while aviation’s green transition must also be a just transition, where environmental and social sustainability goes hand in hand.

“European pilots are fully committed to the Paris Agreement. European pilots support the goals of the European Green Deal and the ‘Fit for 55’ package.

They are willing to help build a greener, socially and economically robust future for aviation,” says ECA Vice-President Juan Carlos Lozano, referring to ECA’s newly presented Position Paper ‘Securing a Sustainable Future for Aviation”.

“We are ready to contribute concretely to the collective effort to reduce aviation’s environmental footprint. Our ambition is to collaborate with the industry and regulators in promoting new operational practices and procedures bringing further environmental gains while keeping safety as a priority,” declared Lozano.

ECA is hopeful that the ongoing EU legislative processes will deliver the right regulatory vehicles to set aviation on its decarbonization path.

As such ECA supports the so-called SAF allowances mechanism, which has gained traction in the European Parliament and also in the Council.

“However, additional policy initiatives are urgently needed if an EU blending mandate is not to remain wishful thinking at the end of the day,” commented Lozano.

“We urge all industry players, the Member States, and the European Commission to act in a truly public-private partnership spirit and to swiftly take concrete actions to boost the production and uptake of SAF by building up a strong industrial pillar in Europe,” he concluded.

’Building back better’ has become the new motto in the post-crisis era. It is the European pilots’ firm belief that aviation must seize this opportunity to ‘reinvent’ itself and become, again, a sustainable, robust, and resilient 3.0 industry – a pre-requisite for any further growth perspective in the long term.

Sustainability must therefore be the cornerstone of any aviation rebuilding. And sustainability is threefold:

environmental, economic, and social.

“More than ever, it is essential that greening aviation, which has become and rightly so a top priority, does not come at the expense of social rights and quality employment,” says Otjan de Bruijn, ECA President.

New airline business models, the mushrooming of precarious atypical employment forms, and, more recently, the COVID-19 pandemic have shaken the industry and deteriorated aircrews’ working environment.

“ECA calls upon policymakers to enable a regulatory and policy environment that promotes social sustainability at all stages of the transition towards a decarbonized aviation sector,” he stressed.

RECOGNISING THE CHALLENGE

Climate change is one of the biggest challenges of our times.

Aviation is a strategic European infrastructure that will continue to play a vital role with regards to ensuring safe mobility in Europe. However, aviation will have to engage in a very ambitious decarbonization pathway to be part of the ‘green’ solution. ECA, therefore, calls on policymakers and all stakeholders in the air transport industry to join forces and act swiftly to maintain a resilient, competitive, and sustainable aviation system in Europe.

2. COMMITMENT TO THE EU GREEN DEAL

European pilots are committed to the goals of the European Green Deal and overall welcome the ambitious ‘Fit for 55’ package policy initiatives, however subject to a number of observations and suggested improvements.

3. SUSTAINABLE AVIATION FUELS (SAF) – A STRATEGIC RESOURCE SAF

are widely recognized as the most promising avenue to decarbonize aviation in the short to medium term and as such ReFuelEU is a key pillar of the ‘Fit for 55’ package in introducing a blending mandate. Securing early access to a sufficient supply of SAF, at a reasonable price, will be a crucial asset to be among the winners of the green transition, as access to SAF will define who will fly the routes in the future.

European pilots, therefore, call upon the EU policymakers and the industry to take the necessary, urgent steps to become a leader in producing truly sustainable SAFs to secure future connectivity, employment, and competitiveness of Europe’s aviation.

PILOTS’ CONTRIBUTION

It is ECA’s ambition to promote new operational practices and procedures bringing environmental gains. European pilots are ready to contribute concretely, in their own remit, to the collective effort to reduce aviation’s environmental footprint.

It is of utmost importance to ensure that the level of safety shall be maintained or improved when such environmentally driven procedures are introduced.

5. SUSTAINABLE GROWTH

Scientific evidence shows that sustainable growth in aviation is achievable, provided a number of well-chosen, timely and ambitious measures are taken to prevent global warming from going beyond +2 degrees Celsius.

6. ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY MUST GO HAND IN HAND WITH SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC SUSTAINABILITY

It is essential that greening aviation does not come at the expense of social rights, quality employment, and decent working conditions. ECA, therefore, calls upon policymakers to enable a regulatory and policy environment that promotes social sustainability at all stages of the transition towards a decarbonized aviation sector.

This also means that the additional costs related to the green transition should not be compensated by cutting costs through the use of precarious atypical forms of employment (such as broker agencies and zero-hours contracts, (bogus) self-employment, or exploitative Pay-to-Fly schemes).

Putting airlines in a position to invest in green economic sustainability is also important. Securing a regulatory framework ensuring fair competition and a level playing field is therefore paramount.

AVIATION – A STRATEGIC INFRASTRUCTURE & PART OF THE ‘GREEN’ SOLUTION

European infrastructure, providing essential connectivity and promoting socio-economic cohesion and timely supply of goods and services. This infrastructure is a public good, part of the wider economy’s backbone, and will continue to play an important role in regards to safely air-connected Europe.

For these reasons, ECA is of the firm opinion that aviation must be part of the ‘green’ solution and set the basis now for being part of a safe and sustainable future transport system in Europe. The need for securing a sustainable future for aviation comes against the backdrop of the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report1, released in February 2022, which confirms that climate change is one of the biggest challenges of our times. It stresses that ambitious, accelerated action is required to adapt to climate change, at the same time as making rapid, deep cuts in greenhouse gas emissions.

While aviation’s emissions represent slightly less than 3% of global CO2 emissions (pre-pandemic levels) they continue to increase

2. The estimated long-term annual improvement in fuel efficiency of over 2% per year will therefore not be sufficient to make aviation carbon neutral by 2050.

Furthermore, in 2020, the consultancy Roland Berger forecasted that if other industries decarbonize in line with current projections, aviation could account for up to 24% of global emissions by 2050 – unless there is a significant technological shift, concluding the industry needs a revolution

3. Finally, the energy crisis which arose in 2021, worsened by the war in Ukraine, is expected to last. As a consequence, all industries heavily depending on fossil energy will be severely impacted in the future

4. Putting aviation on a green path will therefore be essential to make the industry more resilient.

Against this background, the aviation industry will have to engage on a very ambitious decarbonization pathway, and scientific evidence shows that sustainable growth in aviation is achievable – provided bold measures are taken soon enough and by all relevant players concerned.

ECA, therefore, calls on policymakers and all stakeholders in the air transport industry to join forces and act swiftly to preserve a resilient, competitive, safe, and environmentally sustainable aviation system in Europe, and to contribute to the plan and goals of the Paris climate agreement.

Against this background, the aviation industry will have to engage on a very ambitious decarbonization pathway, and scientific evidence shows that sustainable growth in aviation is achievable – provided bold measures are taken soon enough and by all relevant players concerned.

ECA, therefore, calls on policymakers and all stakeholders in the air transport industry to join forces and act swiftly to preserve a resilient, competitive, safe, and environmentally sustainable aviation system in Europe, and to contribute to the plan and goals of the Paris climate agreement.

Click to read the full story: How to Secure a Sustainable Future for Aviation | eTurboNews

The post How to Secure a Sustainable Future for Aviation appeared first on Travel Daily.

[ad_2]

Source link

[ad_1]

[ad_2]

Source link

[ad_1]

The post Qatar Airways Group reported highest profit in its history appeared first on TD (Travel Daily Media) Travel Daily.

According to the 2021/21 annual report, published by Qatar Airways Group, the company recorded its strongest financial performance during that period, 200 percent above its highest annual historical profit.

In the most difficult period ever in the global airline industry, the airline credits its positive results to its agility and successful strategy which continued to focus on customer needs and evolving market opportunities, as well as efficiency and the commitment of its worldwide employees.

This profit is not only a record for Qatar Airways Group, but also a record among all other airlines that have published financial results for this financial year worldwide.

Qatar Airways Group reported a record net profit of QAR 5.6 billion (US$ 1.54 billion) during the fiscal year 2021/22. Overall revenue increased to QAR 52.3 billion (US$ 14.4 billion), up 78 per cent compared to last year and a remarkable two per cent higher than the full financial year pre-COVID (i.e., 2019/20). Passenger revenue increased by 210 per cent over the last year, due to the growth of the Qatar Airways network, increase in market share and higher unit revenue, for the second financial year in a row. Qatar Airways carried 18.5 million passengers, an increase of 218 per cent over last year.

Qatar Airways Cargo remained the leading player in the world as its revenue experienced an impressive growth of 25 per cent over last year with the growth in cargo capacity (Available Tonne Kilometres) of 25 per cent annually.

The Group generated strong EBITDA Margin of 34 per cent at QAR 17.7 billion (US$ 4.9 billion). EBITDA was higher than the previous year by QAR 11.8 billion (US$ 3.2 billion) due to streamlined, agile and fit-for-purpose operations across all business areas. These record earnings are the result of decisions made during the pandemic to expand the Qatar Airways’ passenger and cargo networks, with a more accurate forecast of the global market recovery, building further customer and trade loyalty and product excellence combined with strong cost control.

Despite the challenges of COVID-19, the national carrier of the State of Qatar grew to more than 140 destinations in 2021/22, opening new routes including Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire; Lusaka, Zambia; Harare, Zimbabwe; Almaty, Kazakhstan and Kano and Port Harcourt, Nigeria in addition to resuming flights to key markets across Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Asia. The company has operated continuously the largest network among all Middle Eastern airlines, as measured by number or destinations as well as weekly flights.

Minister of state for Energy and Qatar Airways Group Chairman, His Excellency Mr. Saad Bin Sharida Al-Kaabi, said: “Qatar Airways Group has demonstrated a robust role in the aviation industry, and these financial results are a clear indication of the Group’s strong performance. Against challenges during the previous period, I am delighted by the achievements that have been accomplished this year and by the way the Group has swiftly responded to these challenges.”

Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker, said: “This year Qatar Airways Group celebrates a quarter of a century of history since its relaunch, whilst maintaining strong performance and growing profitability. Our commitment to providing the greatest choices to our passengers, maintaining the highest levels of safety in the industry and earning trust have made us proudly become the airline of choice for millions of travellers around the world. We have pursued every business opportunity and left no stone unturned as we aimed to meet our targets.”

“In 2021, we grew significantly to become the world’s largest global long-haul carrier in 2021 by RPKs. We also received the industry’s most prestigious accolade ‘Airline of the Year’ for a record-breaking sixth time in the Skytrax World Airline Awards in addition to recognition for the airline’s hub, Hamad International Airport as ‘Best Airport in the World’ 2021. The Qatar Airways Cargo division also earned three major industry awards including Cargo Operator of the Year at the ATW Airline Awards; Cargo Airline of the Year, and Air Cargo Industry Achievement Award at Air Cargo Week’s World Air Cargo Awards. These achievements not only highlight our exceptional brand reputation but also our outstanding hard work across the Qatar Airways Group family.”

“I am extremely proud of the decisions we have made to embrace efficiency and achieve strong cost control across several operational departments whilst engaging in environmental and sustainable initiatives. This has positioned us at the forefront in the field of sustainability, including environmental protection and social commitment. Our strategic investments in a varied fleet of modern, fuel-efficient aircraft has helped us overcome the significant challenges related to capacity constraints while balancing commercial needs as swiftly as possible.”

Throughout this year, the Qatar Airways Group maintained a highly-successful and wealthy portfolio of regional and global partnerships to champion the brand across the world including global sporting clubs – Al Sadd SC, Boca Juniors, Brooklyn Nets, FC Bayern München, and Paris Saint-Germain, the partnership with the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL) and FIFA. The group also continued to showcase its unwavering commitment to giving back and supporting communities and charitable initiatives throughout 2021/22. Alongside this, Qatar Airways Group is constantly setting new milestones on environmental sustainability for the aviation industry, and recently released its Sustainability Report 2021 to highlight key initiatives and the Group’s commitment towards the environment and sustainability.

Against the backdrop of the pandemic disruption, Qatar Airways Cargo transported more than 3 million tonnes of air freight and securing eight per cent share in the global market. Cargo also transported more than 600 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines over the course of the pandemic to date and also concentrated its efforts in enhancing its renowned Pharma product and industry presence, while also ensuring commitment to its ground-breaking WeQare initiative, which consists of a series of positive and impactful actions in the form of chapters based on the core pillars of sustainability – environment, society, economy and culture.

Click to read the full story: Qatar Airways Group reported highest profit in its history | eTurboNews

The post Qatar Airways Group reported highest profit in its history appeared first on Travel Daily.

[ad_2]

Source link