Rumours on JAL-ANA merger within Japanese government
The airline will have a share placement aiming to raise 332.1 billion yen ($3.2 billion). The airline’s share price has sunk more than 30% this year and it is bracing for a record annual loss.
ANA said it will use funds to repay long-term debt and buy Boeing 787 aircraft to ‘optimise supply to demand’ for the travel recovery. ANA is forecasting a net loss of $4.8 billion for the fiscal year which ends in March 2021.
It recently outlined a restructuring plan which will reduce costs by about 400 billion yen.
It will retire planes and cancel orders to reduce its overall fleet size and temporarily transfer hundreds of employees to other companies.
“We will accelerate our business reform while keeping our financial health,” said Kimihiro Nakahori, ANA Director of Finance. Last week, main rival Japan Airlines said it hopes to raise up to $1.75 billion in a share sale.
Both airlines may still seek government loans which led to one government advisor to suggest ANA and JAL should merge businesses
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