Define irony: at a time when Qatar is suffering an economic and geographic blockade, and its sovereign wealth fund is reportedly preparing to start liquidating some of its domestic holdings, moments ago American Airlines announced it has received an unsolicited notice from Qatar Airways indicating an interest in acquiring a 10% stake in AAL, sending the carrier’s shares surging 5.6% pre-market.
In a filing, AAL reported that Qatar Airways has also submitted a filing under the Hart- Scott-Rodino Act with respect to potential investment in AAL, and notes that AAL’s Certificate of Incorporation prohibits anyone from acquiring 4.75% or more of the company’s outstanding stock without advance approval from the board following a written request; the board has not received any such request
American notes that the Qatar offer does not alter AAL’s conviction on the need to enforce the Open Skies agreements with United Arab Emirates and Qatar and ensure fair competition with Gulf carriers, including Qatar Airways. And curiously, American adopted a political tone when it said it continues to believe the U. S. President and administration will “stand up to foreign governments to end massive carrier subsidies that threaten the U. S. aviation industry.”
Full statement below:
This post was published at Zero Hedge on Jun 22, 2017.
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