14-Jan-2011 4:47 PM

AirAsia shares hit all-time record, Virgin Blue shares recover

Shares in AirAsia rose 6.3% on Thursday, hitting an all-time high of MYR3.04 after two days of relatively heavy trading. AirAsia shares have been trading generally upwards since May-2010, more than doubling in value. The shares have eased down 1.6% in trading to 1pm Sydney time today.

Shares in Virgin Blue were up 2.3%. Despite concerns about the affect of the Queensland floods on the carrier’s operations, its ongoing diversification and tie-up moves continue to present a challenge to the Qantas Group. Virgin Blue has recently signed deals with Etihad Airways, Air New Zealand and Skywest Airlines.

Elsewhere, shares in European LCCs were generally weaker. Cimber Sterling fell 1.7%, while easyJet was down 0.8% and shares in Ryanair and Norwegian were flat.

Selected LCCs' daily share price movements (% change): 13-Jan-2011

PEA