North American Aviation Outlook

2020 brings more uncertainty than normal as trade disputes and tariffs dampen expectations

North American Airlines face a mixed outlook for 2020 as uncertainty over the grounding of Boeing 737 MAX narrowbodies lingers and the prospects of weakening economic trends continue to grow. There's growing concern that an imbalance between supply and demand will occur once the MAX returns to service, particularly so in the US, which would create pricing pressure.

Another unknown for North American operators is the recently imposed tariffs on Airbus aircraft by the US government. Airlines are warning that the tariffs could ultimately result in higher ticket prices at a time when the potential is for an overcapacity overhang in the market.