Road to recovery
February 10, 2020
Low-cost airlines and fintechs will lead the post-pandemic travel industry recovery but companies focused on business and international travel may have to wait until nearly next year, a new report published by Bloomberg Intelligence (BI) says.
Companies such as Ryanair, Southwest Airlines, Wyndham Hotels and Visa are expected to see the first benefits of a travel industry recovery in the US with Europe lagging behind slightly, BI forecasts.
The BI’s North American Post-Pandemic Travel Recovery Report says low-cost airlines could see the start of recovery in the summer as leisure flying returns helping airlines which don’t cross national borders first.
In the US airlines which will benefit will include Southwest, Spirit, Frontier, JetBlue and Alaska while in Europe the winners will include Ryanair, Wizz Air, Easyjet and Norwegian Air, BI says.
Fintechs will be a key indicator as customers will book through plastic making Visa, Mastercard and American Express early beneficiaries possibly as soon as Q2 if vaccinations mean trips can go ahead later in the year.
Airbnb and Booking.com will also benefit from the focus on domestic travel although virus worries will continue throughout the first half of 2021. Expedia, which is more focused on international travel, however will continue to struggle.
