Preowned Bizjet Market Appears Stalled

Improvement in the preowned market has stalled, according to JPMorgan's latest monthly business jet report. However, the firm expects the trend toward lower inventories to restart and continue. The nearly 3-percent decline in preowned inventories in the 12 months following the July 2009 peak has "lost some steam" as levels increased slightly (up 0.1 percent) for the second consecutive month in September. Preowned inventory as a percentage of the in-production business jet fleet stood at 11.7 percent last month, up from 11.4 percent in July. Meanwhile, JPMorgan said, used business jet prices have fallen to 1997 levels, while high inventories could generate incremental price pressure.