Emirates president expects full business travel recovery next year

Emirates President Tim Clark and other global airline CEOs expect a full business travel recovery, a bullish outlook that has replaced the bearish views many held just months ago. “I believe business travel will come bouncing back by the end of next year,” Clark said on Monday in one of the most optimistic international business travel recovery outlooks to date. He added that Emirates anticipates “very strong” business demand in 2023 and 2024 as well. Clark’s comments at the IATA Annual General Meeting in Boston carry extra weight as Emirates relies nearly entirely on international travelers, a market that most other executives have said will come back slower than domestic demand due to border restrictions. He did not elaborate on whether certain international business markets would return before others. Lufthansa Group CEO Carsten Spohr and United CEO Scott Kirby agreed with Clark’s forecast, especially when looking two- to three-years out.<br/>