EVA Airways Corp (EVA, 長榮航空) yesterday announced plans to spend US$100 million to upgrade the business class on its 15 Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, in the hope that a focus on premium customers will help to increase revenue.
EVA, the nation’s second-largest carrier, will complete the upgrade by August next year, with first plane to be finished by the end of this month set to start operating on the Taipei-New York route from June 2.
“Faced with tougher economy-class service competition, the company is looking to attract more premium customers through the upgrade,” EVA president Chang Kuo-wei (張國煒) told a media briefing.
Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times
Chang said the rise of budget airlines had made it increasingly difficult for carriers to focus solely on economy class, which was why EVA had decided to follow Cathay Pacific Airways and Singapore Airlines by targeting business-class customers.
To achieve this goal, EVA would reduce the number of business-class seats, but could increase the price by up to 20 percent, further helping increase company revenue, Chang said.
While market observers remain downbeat about the prospects of the airline sector this year, Chang said it was always good to invest more when economic sentiment was close to the bottom because of lower costs.
Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times
Meanwhile, Chang said he expected the company’s revenue to improve in the second quarter from the first quarter on the back of higher cargo sales led by stable freight rate and volume.
However, the carrier’s performance during the July-to--September period, the peak season for passenger demand, would remain the most important driver for the company this year, he added
In addition, rising crude oil prices continue to increase cost pressure and affect the company’s profitability, he said.
Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times
“Actually, we are likely to improve our sales performance this year,” Chang said. “The only downside is that all our hard work is -going to benefit the oil companies.”
However, EVA had no plans to buy an oil refiner like Delta Air Lines Inc did, as the company does not have the necessary expertise to run an oil refining -company, Chang said.
EVA reported NT$1.08 billion (US$36.9 million), or NT$0.33 per share, in net losses for the first quarter of the year, compared with profits of NT$269.32 million, or NT$0.08 per share, a year earlier, Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE) data showed.
However, revenue for the company totaled NT$25.57 billion in the January-to-March period, up 5.7 percent from the previous year, statistics showed.
EVA’s shares fell 0.28 percent to close at NT$17.95 on the TAIEX yesterday, stock exchange data showed.
The domestic unit of the Chinese-owned, Dutch-headquartered chipmaker Nexperia BV will soon be able to produce semiconductors locally within China, according to two company sources. Nexperia is at the center of a global tug-of-war over critical semiconductor technology, with a Dutch court in February ordering a probe into alleged mismanagement at the company. The geopolitical tussle has disrupted supply chains, with some carmakers reportedly forced to cut production due to chip shortages. Local production would allow Nexperia’s domestic arm, Nexperia Semiconductors (China) Ltd (安世半導體中國), to bypass restrictions in place since October on the supply of silicon wafers — etched with tiny components to
Singapore-based ride-hailing and delivery giant Grab Holdings Ltd has applied for regulatory approval to acquire the Taiwan operations of Germany-based Delivery Hero SE's Foodpanda in a deal valued at about US$600 million. Grab submitted the filing to the Fair Trade Commission on Friday last week, with the transaction subject to regulatory review and approval, the company said in a statement yesterday. Its independent governance structure would help foster a healthy and competitive market in Taiwan if the deal is approved, Grab said. Grab, which is listed on the NASDAQ, said in the filing that US-based Uber Technologies Inc holds about 13 percent of
Taiwan is open to joining a global liquefied natural gas (LNG) program if one is created, but on the condition that countries provide delivery even in a scenario where there is a conflict with China, an energy department official said yesterday. While Taiwan’s priority is to have enough LNG at home, the nation is open to exploring potential strategic reserves in other countries such as Japan or South Korea, Energy Administration Deputy Director-General Chen Chung-hsien (陳崇憲) said. While the LNG market does not have a global reserve for emergencies like that of oil, the concept has been raised a few times —
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday received government approval to deploy its advanced 3-nanometer (3nm) process at its second fab currently under construction in Japan, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said in a news release. The ministry green-lit the plan for the facility in Kumamoto, which is scheduled to start installing equipment and come online in 2028 with a monthly production capacity of 15,000 12-inch wafers, the ministry said. The Department of Investment Review in June 2024 authorized a US$5.26 billion investment for the facility, slated to manufacture 6- to 12nm chips, significantly less advanced than 3nm process. At a meeting with
RSS