Japan Airlines to relist shares
Saturday, January 7, 2012
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bd/JAL_Boeing_777-200_JA8985_BriYYZ.jpg/220px-JAL_Boeing_777-200_JA8985_BriYYZ.jpg)
Image: BriYYZ.
Japan Airlines (JAL) is planning on relisting its shares in an IPO on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. By September, JAL shareholders intend to sell between ¥500 billion and ¥1 trillion (US$6.4b - US$12.8b, €5b - €10b).
If the sale goes into high-end estimates, it will make JAL the largest airline in the world by market value. It will also be the largest IPO in Japan since the 2010 listing of Dai-Ichi Life. However, Senri Sasahara, chief executive officer of Innovative Advisor Corp, said “The amount sought may be a bit too ambitious.”
JAL entered bankruptcy protection in January 2010 and was later given a government bailout. When it was delisted from TSE, it cut one-third of its workers, and reduced the benefits of remaining employees. JAL emerged from bankruptcy in March 2011. Since then, it has posted a record ¥188.4 billion (US$2.4b, €1.9b) in profit for fiscal year 2010.
JAL faces growing competition from discount airlines, such as AirAsia Japan and Peach. In response, JAL entered into a joint venture to form a low-cost carrier with JetStar Airways.
Related articles
- "Japan Airlines to file for bankruptcy" — Wikinews, January 18, 2010
Sources
- "Japan Airlines plans to relist shares in Tokyo" — BBC News Online, January 6, 2012
- Chris Cooper. "JAL Plans $13B IPO as Budget Carriers Loom" — Bloomberg, January 5, 2012