Panama Canal eyes gas pipeline: The Panama Canal is considering the construction of a pipeline to diversify its operations and to move up to 1 mn barrels per day of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) across the passage — with Japan as the leading prospective buyer of the LPG, canal administrator Ricaurte Vasqueez told Reuters. The canal expects to make a final decision about the pipeline in the next 12 months, with investment tickets totaling USD 8 bn for the infrastructure and sustainability projects spread over the next decade.

ICYMI: Hong Kong-based conglomerate CK Hutchinson has sold a majority stake in its USD 22.8 bn ports arm to a consortium led by the US’ Blackrock for USD 19 bn last week. The transaction saw the US-based buyers handed control of ports along the Panama Canal, which US President Donald Trump commended as the US “reclaiming” the waterway.

Some US airlines might hit turbulence in earnings: Major US carriers Delta Airlines and Southwest Airlines have tempered their earnings forecasts for 1Q 2025 amid stock rate losses that could be bigger than Silicon Valley’s recent USD 750 bn market value loss, Reuters reports.

Sign of the time? Airlines struggling have been generally treated as one of the early signs of a recession, Reuters reported. It signals both less spending on travel and a possible slowdown in trade, impacting cargo movement amid economic uncertainty stemming from the US’ ongoingtariff war, which prompted cutbacks in corporate and discretionary spending.

Airline-specific headwinds: American Airlines pointed to a slump in consumer spending on domestic leisure — especially in March — as the reason behind its own forecast reduction, Axios reports. Delta Airlines also noted a “softness in bookings and demand trends” in a recent disclosure. Airlines are also pointing to fliers’mounting safety concerns following a series of accidents such as last January’s plane crash in Washington — the deadliest US crash in 20 years.

A story told in figures: Delta cut its 1Q revenue growth forecast by about half on Tuesday — projecting a 3-4% y-o-y growth, down from a prior forecast of 7-9%. The carrier’s stock price declined 24% in the past month, largely echoing the 22% drop seen by the S&P 500 passenger airlines index in the same period. Southwest Airlines also cut its projections for revenue per available seat mile by 3%, citing weaker bookings.

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