American Airlines has received an ‘unsolicited’ approach from Qatar Airways which wants to acquire 10% of the US carrier.
In a regulatory filing, American Airlines said Qatar intended to buy at least US $808 m of its shares.
American Airlines said it would respond ‘in due course’.
Shares in American Airlines, which is the biggest airline in the world, initially rose 5%, but fell back to a 1.1% rise by the end of trading. Qatar Airways said it sees American as a good investment opportunity and would not involve itself in management, operations or governance.
“Qatar Airways believes in American Airlines’ fundamentals,” the firm said.
In 2015, Qatar Airways took a 10% stake in International Airlines Group (IAG), the owner of British Airways and Iberia.
Then in July 2015 it increased its stake to 20%, becoming IAG’s biggest shareholder. But the airline has encountered turbulence.
Earlier this month, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Libya, Yemen and the Maldives cut diplomatic ties with Qatar.
Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt all said they would stop flights in and out of Qatar, and close their airspace to the country’s flag carrier, Qatar Airways. (BBC)
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