GATX (GAX) Risk Analysis

We depend on continued demand from our customers to lease or use our transportation assets and services and on our customers' ability to pay for leased assets and services. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has caused, and is expected to continue to cause, the slowdown of economic activity around the world (including a decrease in demand for a broad variety of goods and services), disruptions in global supply chains, a dramatic reduction in air travel, and significant volatility and disruption of financial markets. As a result, there has been reduced demand for leasing of certain railcar types and for aircraft spare engines, as well as downward pressure on asset utilization, lease rates and renewals, and asset disposition activity across our segments, which adversely affects our financial performance. Prolonged weakness in certain sectors of the global economy may make it difficult for us to lease certain types of our transportation assets that are returned either at lease end or due to customer bankruptcies or defaults. Additionally, there have been a number of requests from certain railcar- and aircraft spare engine-leasing customers for payment deferrals and rate restructurings, and we and our RRPF affiliates have made such accommodations for certain of those customers. Although these lease restructurings primarily provide for delays in the receipt of lease revenues, the pandemic may threaten the solvency of customers in certain industries and lead to an increase in customer bankruptcies. We are facing increased operational challenges from the need to protect employee health and safety, workplace disruptions and restrictions on the movement of people, raw materials and goods. The situation surrounding COVID-19 is fluid and, depending on how long markets remain disrupted, financial and market dynamics and volatility may heighten risks related to our financing activities. Conditions in the financial and credit markets may also limit the availability of funding or increase the cost of funding, which could adversely affect our business, financial position, and results of operations. Because the severity, magnitude, and duration of the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic consequences are uncertain, rapidly changing, and difficult to predict, the pandemic's impact on our operations, financial performance, and liquidity, as well as its impact on our ability to successfully execute our business strategy, remains uncertain and difficult to predict. Further, the ultimate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our operations and financial performance depends on many factors that are not within our control, including, but not limited, to: governmental, business, suppliers', and individuals' actions that have been and continue to be taken in response to the pandemic; the impact of the pandemic and actions taken in response on global and regional economies, travel, and economic activity; general economic uncertainty in the global markets we serve and volatility in financial markets; global economic conditions and levels of economic growth; and the pace of recovery when the COVID-19 pandemic subsides. As a result, we expect COVID-19 to continue to negatively impact our operating results in future periods. However, we are currently unable to provide any assurance as to the magnitude and duration of any such impact. We also expect that the COVID-19 pandemic will increase many of the risks described in "Item 1A, Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019. Other than as described in this item, there have been no material changes in our risk factors since December 31, 2019. For a discussion of our risk factors, refer to "Item 1A. Risk Factors" of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019.