Hong Kong flag carrier Cathay Pacific Airways will shorten its boarding and gate closure times by five minutes to help ensure on-time departures. The airline said on Thursday that, from June 1, boarding gates at Hong Kong International Airport will now close 15 minutes before departure. The company said late-arriving or no-show passengers were a key cause of delays, as safety regulations required ...
Hong Kong flag carrier Cathay Pacific Airways will shorten its boarding and gate closure times by five minutes to help ensure on-time departures. The airline said on Thursday that, from June 1, boarding gates at Hong Kong International Airport will now close 15 minutes before departure. The company said late-arriving or no-show passengers were a key cause of delays, as safety regulations required removing their checked baggage from the aircraft hold before departure. The boarding time will also...
China’s gasoline demand is expected to slide further this year, as the Iran war pushes up oil prices and accelerates a long-term shift away from the internal combustion engine. Gasoline consumption could shrink 5.5% this year, according to a forecast from GL Consulting, which has downgraded its estimate from a previous 5.2%. That would be the second-biggest contraction on record — and only after 2...
China’s gasoline demand is expected to slide further this year, as the Iran war pushes up oil prices and accelerates a long-term shift away from the internal combustion engine. Gasoline consumption could shrink 5.5% this year, according to a forecast from GL Consulting, which has downgraded its estimate from a previous 5.2%. That would be the second-biggest contraction on record — and only after 2022, when China’s draconian Covid lockdowns caused demand to collapse. GL said its lower forecast reflected the impact of increasing prices as the conflict in the Persian Gulf upends the oil and gas trade. It matches bleak predictions coming from other analysts — the International Energy Agency sees Chinese gasoline demand slowing “to a crawl” in this quarter, down by about 60,000 barrels a day compared with the same time last year. China is the world’s top crude importer, and yet in recent years the rapid electrification of its vehicle fleet and a switch to fuels including liquefied natural gas has crimped demand, leaving Beijing to confront overcapacity in oil refining. Read More: China’s Energy Imports Plunge as War Chokes Hormuz Shipments The jump in prices since the end of February has exacerbated the problem, prompting drivers to hold back at the pump, said Liao Na, founder of GL. Chinese retail gasoline prices climbed to about 9.56 yuan ($1.41) a liter in mid-April — near record highs, according to GlobalPetrolPrices data quoted by the IEA. To shield consumers from the impact of the war, China’s National Development and Reform Commission capped fuel hikes and later cut prices . “Higher prices at the pump, despite NDRC interventions to limit the increase, have had a chilling effect on gasoline and diesel demand,” said Michal Meidan , director of the China Energy Program at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, “That’s compounded by rising inflationary pressure, but also facilitated by the fact that in most Chinese cities there are convenient alternatives to driving...