- The shares of Interglobe Aviation, the operator India's largest airline IndiGo gained over 9% during the morning trade and were trading at ₹1,026.85.
- "We are in discussion for sale and lease back of our unencumbered assets, which includes the 12 ATRs," the company told Business Insider.
- The company reported the biggest ever net loss of ₹2842.57 crore in the first-quarter earnings.
The company also confirmed to Business Insider that "We are in discussion for sale and lease back of our unencumbered assets, which includes the 12 ATRs. We are working to close these transactions, but it will be difficult to give a specific timeframe for its completion."
Earlier during the investor call post-earnings, IndiGo CEO Ronjoy Dutta said that the domestic carrier was working on the sale and lease back of their unencumbered assets, which are in advanced stages of discussion.
"We are also in discussions with export credit agencies for obtaining moratorium towards principal repayment for aircraft on finance lease," Dutta added.
The coronavirus has brought many hurdles for the aviation sector around the world. The pessimism around air travel has already battered the passenger traffic in India. According to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), India's domestic air passenger traffic crashed over 43% in May on a year-on-year basis. It continued with a 50% dip in June even after the government eased restrictions on domestic travel.
And it reflects in its last quarterly earnings, where the company reported the biggest ever net loss of ₹2842.57 crores.
Indigo has borne the brunt of travel restrictions, and the company introduced various cost-cutting measures such as multiple pay cuts, extended leave without pay, and laying off nearly 10% of its total workforce.
In a desperate move, IndiGo's board has also decided to raise up to ₹4,000 crore through the sale of shares to institutional investors, as it looks to manage cash during the coronavirus pandemic.
The government is opening up international air travel under air bubble agreement with selected countries, which may come as a relief for the airline, but that is not enough to excite the analysts. Manish Hathiramani, proprietary index trader and technical analyst at Deen Dayal Investments said, "The stock is in a range-bound movement. It has been vacillating between ₹850 and ₹1200. No definite direction is clear as yet. Since the trend is choppy, I would advise caution unless either side is triggered."
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