Southwest CEO Sees post-election boost in demand

Demand for plane tickets at Southwest has climbed since Election Day, the carrier’s CE said, adding that he’s encouraged by President-elect Donald Trump’s stated plans to unwind regulations, cut corporate taxes and build infrastructure. “There’s definitely a lift in spirit,” Gary Kelly said Thursday, citing the stock market’s rally in the last month. “I don’t know that we can explain it, but we’ve seen a lift in our booking activity since the election.” The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index climbed 4.8% from Election Day through Wednesday, when Southwest closed at a record. The average portion of seats sold per plane, known as load factor, reached 85.1% last month on the carrier, up from 83.3% a year earlier “We had a record load factor for November,” he said. “It’s not that it was remarkably better, but it was better and we had a really strong month. And bookings for December look a little better. Does that translate into anything different? Not necessarily, except I think we are all feeling a little bit more spring in our step.” Trump’s statements about investing in infrastructure are especially welcome to an industry grappling with a “grossly inefficient” air-traffic-control system, with elements that date to the 1950s, said Kelly, 61. The CEO also is eager to be relieved of regulations that levy burdens on carriers for infrequent problems such as lengthy tarmac delays. He expressed concern, however, about the president-elect’s trade and immigration rhetoric. “Our route system is very well suited to Mexico. Our customers want to go there, and it’s all lined up very well,” he said, calling the country Southwest’s “biggest opportunity” for international growth. We need to grow, but to grow our economy we need to grow our jobs,” he said. “To grow our jobs, we are going to need to grow the population.”<br/>