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Commercial Aircraft Finance Market Outlook 2024

Global Financing Trends

Financial Product Distribution

2024F Leasing

Satisfactory

Leasing channel has selectively begun to offer finance leases, debt products and PDP financing from a diverse pool of lessors, which continues to perform strongly on a global basis.

Satisfactory

2024F Capital Markets

Satisfactory/Cautionary

The market is open to those with strong credit fundamentals and has been actively tapped by the lessor channel in 2023, surpassing 2022 issuance levels. Airline issuance is still muted, reflecting alternative funding channels for cap-ex, as well as the residues of the highly elevated capital markets activity in 2020-2021.

Satisfactory/Cautionary

2024F Commercial Banks

Cautionary

Banks continue to be an important source of liquidity in the lessor market. There is increasing regional banking participation in aircraft financing, featuring a depth of structuring capability and secondary distribution.

Cautionary

2024F Export Credit Agencies

Satisfactory

ECA financing continues to extend its share of new delivery financing as funding diversification is sought by customers.

Satisfactory

2024F Institutional Investors and Funds

Satisfactory/Cautionary

There is ongoing appetite for aviation sector assets, with relative value considerations underpinning transaction underwriting.

Satisfactory/Cautionary

2024F Tax Equity

Cautionary

An important player in the financing market, with an intense focus on credit quality. This source of funding can deliver large tickets underwrites.

Cautionary

2024F Credit Enhanced

Cautionary

Broadening field of players in this market and consequently more deals delivered year over year. The pipeline of opportunities is growing into 2024.

Cautionary

2024F Airframe and Engine Manufacturers

Cautionary

Market liquidity and appetite have continued to be robust, leaving little or no need for OEM engagement.

Cautionary

Regional Finding Insights

North America

Cash was the predominant source of funding in 2023 for North American-/U.S.-based carriers. A combination of higher interest rates and healthy operating results are pushing many North American airlines to continue focusing on deleveraging. Use of delivery financing expected to increase from 2023 but remains below historic levels.

Airline preference for owning aircraft will lead to continued innovation from lessors and credit markets, particularly if capital markets usage remains muted.

North America Insights
Latin America

Despite robust travel demand, Latin American airlines continue to face pressure from volatile foreign currency exchange rates. Lessors remain key to supporting Latin American deliveries.

2023 was a continued restructuring year for Latin American carriers, with most deliveries happening via direct lease or sale leaseback. Interest in financing Boeing deliveries will continue to outpace supply of aircraft, particularly for sale-leasebacks.

Latin America Insights
Asia Pacific & India

In 2023, volume of deliveries to the Asia Pacific and India region remained subdued compared to pre-pandemic levels.

Single-aisle deliveries were primarily to India-based carriers that relied on lessor financing, most commonly sale-leaseback transactions. We expect the reliance on lessor financing to continue to grow across the region as deliveries ramp up, particularly to customers in India and Southeast Asia. Asia-based lessors continue to raise funds in the capital markets through bond issuances for their single-aisle order book deliveries.

Widebody deliveries in the region were predominately to major full-service carriers who used bank debt or cash. In Japan in particular, we’ve seen customers paying for their deliveries with cash and later refinancing via JOLCO transactions or JBIC-guaranteed loans, and we expect this strategy to continue.

Asia Pacific Insights
China

In 2023, deliveries to China remain significantly below pre-pandemic levels, especially with single-aisle aircraft.

Widebody deliveries in the region were primarily freighter aircraft that were paid for with cash or through bank debt. Our customers in the region maintain strong relationships with domestic banks and continue to see competitive pricing. We expect a similar trend with widebody deliveries to our Taiwanese customers.

China Insights
Europe & Central Asia

Cash was the main source of delivery financing for single-aisle aircraft in 2023, as airlines continue to see increased yields and focus on deleveraging.

Lessors continue to be active in Europe and Central Asia, with both sale-leasebacks and lessor direct order placements. Lessor placements continue to be highly weighted with single-aisle aircraft.

Throughout 2023, lessors issued in the unsecured capital markets as having unencumbered aircraft on its respective balance sheets is a major factor in getting or retaining investment-grade ratings.

Export credit continued to play a key role in allowing airlines access to liquidity to acquire aircraft, especially for widebody deliveries.

Europe and Central Asia Insights
Middle East

With abundant liquidity among the GCC banks owing to the sustained higher oil price, GCC banks are expected to increase exposure to the sector but will likely be limited to regional airlines and large lessors.

The steep rise in interest rates and considerable order books has prompted most of the carriers in the region to consider Export Credit Agency financing.

Middle East Insights
Africa

Development financiers play a bigger role in aircraft financing in the African region, with a number of African airlines still widely dependent on government support in one form or another. Lessors are actively considering new opportunities across the continent.

Africa Insights

Leasing

Capital Markets

Capital markets chart

Airlines took advantage of a period of attractive interest rates, developing liquidity buffers that have been increasingly deployed to finance aircraft purchases and capital investments. Recent improvements in credit metrics leave airlines well positioned to take advantage of an easing of capital markets as and when pricing begins to narrow from recently observed elevated levels.

Export Credit Agencies

Export Credit Agencies

ECA funding has increased alongside an uplift in aircraft deliveries, and there is an expectation of further progress on financing of new aircraft into 2024. Competitive pricing continues to attract airlines to ECA financing and also supports funding diversification strategies.

Aircraft Value

Air Cargo

Methodology

Boeing Commercial Airplanes Customer Finance created the Commercial Aircraft Finance Market Outlook (CAFMO) to provide an analysis of the sources of financing for new commercial airplane deliveries (for aircraft 90 seats or above).

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