25-Mar-2010 12:38 PM
Iberia-British Airways merger could be imminent
Iberia stated it would hold its end-of-month board meeting today (25-Mar-2010), creating speculation of an imminent announcement of a confirmed merger agreement with British Airways (Reuters, 24-Mar-2010). The two carriers announced an MoU in Nov-2009, covering a merger which would create the world's third largest airline by revenue, and have subsequently commented that a merger agreement would be confirmed in 1Q2010. The main reason behind the delay relates to BA's multi-billion pound pension fund deficit.