Economy

Across the Atlantic, pilots and flight engineers are 95.7% white and 90.8% male, according to official data.

Faced with a limited number of pilots at a time when air traffic is taking off once more in the United States, companies and unions agree on a long-neglected aspect: the need for increased diversity in the cockpit. In the country, pilots and flight engineers are 95.7% white and 90.8% male, according to official data.

Regional Airlines Association (RAA) President Faye Malarkey Black lambasted in a recent congressional hearing the “very limited diversity” at the controls of planes while the president of the Air Line Pilots Association ( ALPA), Jason Ambrosi, called for change in the face of the glaring lack of women and people from minorities among his counterparts.

There will be a shortage of 17,000 pilots in 2032 in North America

Beyond the need to increase representativeness at work, attracting people with more varied profiles might allow companies to replace the many pilots who chose to take advantage of the voluntary departure plans put in place when traffic collapsed in 2020.

Demand for airline tickets has since rebounded, but airlines can no longer rely on one of their main sources of recruitment: the military. In 2000, half of the pilots of the largest airlines were ex-military. Since the army has acquired many remote-controlled devices, this proportion has fallen to 15%. Three quarters of the pilots of national companies now come from regional companies, estimates the firm Oliver Wyman. According to their estimates, there will be a shortage of 17,000 pilots in 2032 in North America. Previous estimates were even more alarmist.

But in the meantime, companies have set up training programs, such as United Airlines, which wants at least half of the recruits to its Aviation Academy to be women or people from minorities. Companies have also eliminated lines serving small airports, thereby reducing the need for pilots, notes Geoff Murray of the firm Oliver Wyman.

European companies are not in the same situation thanks to the measures put in place by governments during the pandemic, which made it possible not to push pilots to leave. But they should also face recruitment problems within three years given the rebound in international air traffic, estimates Geoff Murray.

Awareness campaigns and establishment of scholarships

The pilot shortage is expected to worsen due to “a coming tsunami of retirements”, RAA President Faye Malarkey Black said at the hearing. His solution: raise the mandatory retirement age for pilots from 65 to 67. She also called for a review of the rules requiring pilots to have flown at least 1,500 hours before being able to take control of an airliner, stressing that they were now largely assisted by piloting aids.

On these solutions, the unions do not agree. They pose risks, noted Jason Ambrosi of ALPA, highlighting in particular the fact of the drastic reduction in fatal accidents since the minimum threshold for flight hours went from 250 to 1,500 in 2010.

“Responding to the temporary problems faced by the industry post-Covid with permanent changes to pilot training and qualification requirements is misguided and dangerous,” he said.

For him, the impact of retirements is overestimated. And companies should not blame the lack of pilots for the closure of regional lines, taken because they are not profitable enough, he argued.

Representatives of airlines and pilots agree, however, that the cost of pilot training, which can exceed $100,000, excludes many candidates from diverse backgrounds, with more limited resources. A government working group has recommended increasing awareness campaigns for aviation careers and setting up dedicated scholarships. Parliamentarians are expected to consider these proposals when debating the upcoming funding bill for the agency overseeing aviation, the FAA.

Rising rates, banking crisis and economic uncertainty have dampened the desire of many to go public since the start of the year, with a few exceptions, including small Chinese companies, which have landed by the dozens on the New York market, despite tensions between the United States and China.

Golden Heaven, Top KingWin or Millennium Group may be companies with little notoriety, three Chinese SMEs whose combined annual turnover barely exceeds 100 million dollars, but they are nonetheless now listed on Wall Street.

Like them, dozens of Chinese companies have succeeded in their “IPO”, their entry on the New York Stock Exchange, since January, most of them on the Nasdaq, on a market that is nevertheless in hibernation, which has known several weeks without any IPO.

For Bob McCooey, responsible for the listing of Asia and Pacific companies at Nasdaq, the movement benefits from an agreement between the American and Chinese authorities on a point which posed a dangerous hazard to Chinese groups on Wall Street.

China has previously refused to allow auditors of Chinese companies listed in New York to be audited by the independent accounting organization PCAOB, as provided for in a law passed in the US Congress in December 2020.

Some 248 Chinese entities listed in the United States, with a total capitalization of more than 2,000 billion dollars, were threatened with a forced departure from Wall Street for lack of compliance with the text.

In August, five major Chinese companies had even chosen to leave New York on their own, notably the oil company PetroChina and the aluminum giant Chalco.

An agreement was finally reached between governments a few days later, “which helped to reopen the window of introductions for certain Chinese companies which had put their projects on hold”, explains Bob McCooey.

In addition, last February, the Chinese market policeman, the CSRC, clarified the rules applicable to companies wishing to be listed abroad, an initiative interpreted as a gesture of openness.

– Small amounts –

In addition to this regulatory thinning, Chinese groups are benefiting from the reopening of the Chinese economy following almost three years of zero-Covid policy. It raised hopes of a vigorous rebound in activity and consumption, at a rate faster than that of Western economies.

“Investors are always on the lookout for” investment opportunities, argues Bob McCooey, which can lead them to “geographically diversify their portfolio and invest elsewhere than in their region”.

Almost all Chinese stock IPOs have raised less than $50 million each. These moderate amounts partly explain this successful series, according to Matthew Kennedy, senior strategist at specialist firm Renaissance Capital.

These small Chinese players also have for them to be profitable, for the most part, an asset in an uncertain context. Those who are not often belong to a popular sector that is popular with investors, such as Xiao-I, which specializes in artificial intelligence, or Healthy Green Group, a chain of organic food stores.

China prohibits direct foreign investment in the capital of national companies in most economic sectors, unless their headquarters are located elsewhere than in the People’s Republic. To circumvent this prohibition, they resort to a complex double mechanism, called VIE on the Chinese side and ADR (or ADS) on the American side.

Concretely, investors who subscribe to these ADRs hold shares of a mirror company of the Chinese group concerned, but not actually a piece of the main entity.

For Matthew Kennedy, the geopolitical context, which has seen tensions increase between China and the United States in recent months, does not weigh on the propensity of Chinese SMEs to join Wall Street.

“That said, I wouldn’t be surprised if the situation changed, because the two governments have already demonstrated their willingness to use financial regulation as a political instrument,” he tempers.

Already, the New York stock exchanges are relatively inaccessible for a Chinese flagship of substantial size, considers the analyst, in part because China “wants to promote its own financial center” and push its companies to be listed on they.

“A small company can be listed in the United States without triggering a political storm.”

Krung Thai is ready to sell bonds on the bank’s wallet “Savings Aunjai”, easy to buy, easy to sell via the app. Wallets only, 10-23 May, this July 2023

Krung Thai Bank is committed to developing products and services that meet the needs of all investor groups. to create financial stability in the future SUBSCRIBE’s Savings Wallet “Savings Aunjai Edition” is now available for sale to allow all groups of investors to have equal access to bond investment through digital channels. The most efficient centralization can be traded in an instant. Build financial stability in the future Meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in reducing inequality and solving global warming. from the development of paperless investment products This is in line with the vision of “Krungthai alongside Thailand towards sustainability”.

For wallet savings bonds, 7-year “Savings Aunjai” model, a credit limit of 10 billion baht, a fixed interest rate of 2.70% per year on the “Pao Tang” app, the minimum investment is only 100 baht, but not more than 20 million. baht per person, payable every 3 months, sold to individuals with Thai nationality aged 15 years and over, an investment that meets the needs of savings Because the risk is low and returns consistently. Ownership can be transferred and/or Redeem before the maturity date following holding bonds for at least 6 months, can be resold in the secondary market through the Pao Tang app, which is a Thailand Open Digital Platform that everyone can easily access, convenient, safe, 24 hours a day. from 10 – 23 May 2023

In addition, the Bank participated in the sale of savings bonds. There are 2 more “Savings Aunjai” models, namely 7-year-old and 10-year-old, with a total sales amount of 30,000 million baht, starting with a minimum investment of 1,000 baht, paying interest every 3 months. On May 22-23, 2023, by the 7-year-old model, the amount of sales is 25,000 million baht, open for public offering. Interest rate of 2.70% per year through the Krungthai NEXT app and all branches of Krungthai Bank nationwide. The remaining 5,000 million baht is a 10-year model, paying interest every 6 months, offered to non-profit juristic persons as specified by the SEC, paying a fixed interest rate of 2.60% per year.
As for the process of investing in wallet bonds, SCB is quick and easy. Just download the wallet app, activate the SUBSCRIBE wallet and transfer money to SUBSCRIBE wallet with Wallet ID or QR PromptPay via Mobile Banking of all banks. Choose the bond model you want to buy. specify amount And press confirm payment with a 6-digit code (PIN) will receive evidence as E-Slip Payment automatically stored in the mobile phone. For Krungthai NEXT app customers who want to adjust the transfer limit to SUBSCRIBE wallet to buy bonds. Can make transactions via the Krungthai NEXT app immediately. Customers who have a Krungthai Bank savings account. You can bind your account to the bank’s wallet. The system will automatically deduct the account balance. to buy bonds without adding funds to your wallet Investors must understand product characteristics. Return conditions and risks before investing and can learn more details at www.krungthai.com or contact Krungthai Contact Center Tel. 02-111-1111