26-Nov-2010 3:15 PM

Westjet leads day of marginal gains for Canadian and South American carriers; LAN Airlines also up

Analysis

Canadian and South American airline stocks were mostly up on Thursday (25-Nov-2010) as the Canadian stock market made a slight gain and Latin American markets slipped. US markets were closed for Thanksgiving.

WestJet (+3.9%) was the biggest gainer of the day as Canada's TSX rose 0.3%. Air Canada (+0.8%) also rose, while Jazz Air Income Fund (-0.2%) was the only carrier to decline for the day.

During trading, Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) ruled against WestJet stating it must implement a statutory cap of CAD1800 for lost or damaged domestic and international luggage. The carrier previously imposed a cap of CAD250 for luggage.

See related CAPA Profile: Passenger Rights and Consumer Affairs

In Latin America, Chile's IPSA (-0.3%) and Brazil's Bovespa (-0.4%) both ended trading marginally lower, following a light day of trading due to US markets being closed. MetAnalisis analyst Gerardo Copca told Reuters that investors will have to wait until Monday (29-Nov-2010) "to see where the market is going".

Despite the decline, LAN Airlines (+1.0%), TAM (+0.8%) and GOL (+0.3%) all ended the session higher. LAN has been gaining on reports it plans to purchase 15-20 A320 aircraft for its expansion in Colombia and to complement the Boeing aircraft it will acquire through its acquisition of Colombian airline Aires, which holds a 22% market share in Colombia, for USD32.5 million

North & South America selected airlines daily share price movements (% change): 25-Nov-2010

Westjet leads day of marginal gains for Canadian and South American carriers; LAN Airlines also up

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