Delta had been expecting a record year. Then a trade war broke out
By MICHELLE CHAPMAN, Associated Press Business Writer
Delta Air Lines, which believed as recently as January that it was on track for its best financial year in company history, said Wednesday that disruptions in global trade have created such enormous uncertainty that it scratched its performance expectations for 2025.
It is a remarkable walk-back for the nation’s most profitable airline, and other companies are following suit. Hours after Delta remove its guidance for the year, Walmart dropped the first quarter operating profit guidance it had provided to investors, citing tariff risks.
Delta is cutting its flight schedule in anticipation of a slowdown in spending as businesses and households brace for higher prices.
“With broad economic uncertainty around global trade, growth has largely stalled,” CEO Ed Bastian said in a statement on Wednesday. “In this slower-growth environment, we are protecting margins and cash flow by focusing on what we can control. This includes reducing planned capacity growth in the second half of the year.”
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