US airline shares continue to slide; Spirit reportedly delaying IPO
North America airlines shares continued their slide on Tuesday, with stock prices falling across the board for US and Canadian carriers. Continued concerns over the impact of the Icelandic volcanic eruption as well oil prices bouncing back contributed to the slide.
Hardest hit was Air Canada B shares, which fell 3.3%. The carrier's shares have lost almost a third of their value for the year to date.
In the US, Spirit Airlines has reportedly delayed its planned IPO. The airline announced its planned listing in Sep-2010, aiming to sell 20 million shares at USD14-16 each to raise as much as USD320 million. The money will be used to repay debt and pay Indigo Partners, which bought a majority stake in Spirit in 2006.
Latin American airline shares avoided the slump suffered by their more northerly counterparts. LAN Airlines, Copa, GOL and TAM all saw minor stock gains.
Selected Americas airline share price movements (% change): 24-May-2011
