2019年经济学人 航空航天业和波音(3)（在线收听）

Affected airlines can expect compensation in kind from Boeing, in the form of bigger discounts and better deals on other services. The same cannot be said of Boeing’s suppliers. It has relentlessly squeezed their profit margins in recent years in search of efficiency. Many have invested in extra capacity to supply parts for 57 max planes a month, Boeing’s original production target for this year. Instead, Boeing cut monthly output back from 52 to 42.

受影响的航空公司可以从波音获得实物补偿，形式是更大的折扣和更好的其他服务。波音的供应商却不是这样。近年来，为了追求效率，播音无情地挤压了供应商的利润率。许多公司已投资增加产能，每月最多可供应57架飞机的零部件，这是波音今年最初的生产目标。但相反，波音将月产量从52架削减至42架。

Low spirits

没精打采

Spirit AeroSystems, which gets around half its revenues from supplying fuselages for the 737 max, saw margins slip and is cutting overtime and putting workers on unpaid leave to cut costs after “disruption in a complex production system”, says its boss, Tom Gentile. It has lost 28% of its market capitalisation, or around $3bn, since March. Allegheny Technologies, which makes composite materials used in the aircraft, has been similarly clobbered. General Electric, America’s troubled engineering giant which supplies max engines in a joint venture with Safran, a French aerospace company, faces a bigger bill. It is paid only when planes are delivered. It estimates that its cashflow could be reduced by as much $1.4bn in 2019, adding to its woes. Safran’s results for the first half of 2019, due on September 5th, will be pored over for signs of trouble.

Spirit AeroSystems大约有一半的收入来自为737 max提供机身。该公司老板汤姆?詹蒂表示，在“一个复杂的生产系统遭到破坏”后，该公司利润率出现下滑，正在削减加班和让员工无薪休假，以削减成本。自今年3月以来，该公司市值缩水28%，约30亿美元。制造飞机所用复合材料的阿勒格尼技术公司也遭受了类似的打击。美国陷入困境的工程巨头“通用电气”，在与法国航空航天公司“赛峰”的合资企业中提供max发动机，面临着更大的开支。只有在飞机交付时才能收回款项。该公司估计，到2019年，其现金流可能减少多达14亿美元，使其雪上加霜。将于9月5日公布的赛峰2019年上半年业绩将被仔细研究，以寻找问题的迹象。

Most aerospace firms do not live by Boeing alone. That, and Boeing’s decision to maintain production, has insulated them from a bigger fallout. UTC, an American conglomerate which makes electronics, seats, wheels and brakes for the max, reckons the delays will have only a small impact on profits. The situation for suppliers is summed up neatly by David Squires, boss of Senior, a British firm that makes high-tech components not only for Boeing but also for GE and Spirit. The grounding has not been devastating, he insists. That said, his firm will now be where it hoped to be in April 2019 only by the start of 2021.

大多数航空公司并不仅仅依靠波音公司。这一点，以及波音维持生产的决定，使它们免受了更大的影响。UTC是一家为max生产电子产品、座椅、车轮和刹车的美国企业集团，该公司认为这些延期只会对利润产生很小的影响。英国Senior 公司的老板 David Squires 对供应商的情况进行了精辟的总结。Senior 公司不仅为波音公司生产高科技零部件，还为通用电气和Spirit公司生产。他坚称，这次停飞并没有造成灾难性后果。话虽如此，他的公司到2019年4月才能达到预期目标，2021年初才能真正实现。