AirAsia Group Bhd group chief executive officer (CEO) Tan Sri Tony Fernandes hinted that the budget airline may exit its India joint venture (JV) because India is deemed a peripheral market for the group.
“We would never say that we would never exit India,” Fernandes was quoted as saying in a Credit Suisse report.
The Asean region is a core market for the airline, while India and Japan are peripheral markets, Fernandes said during a global call arranged by Credit Suisse.
He shared that they have a good partner in Tata and are looking for an international licence.
There has been market share gain in this resumed phase of flying (from 25 May),” Credit Suisse said in a report on 22 June.
“However, Air Asia said that it is not thinking of adding any new planes for a quite a while. Air Asia seemed to believe that oil prices can stay low for a long while (a lot of oil) and, thus, there are limited gains from a 15% fuel saving in a low oil price environment,” the report said.
“Air Asia seemed willing to take second-hand capacity if need be rather than go for a new plane.”
According to AirAsia Group’s annual report, the group owns a 49% stake in Airasia India.
News reports today cited the Credit Suisse report yesterday, which quoted Fernandes as saying during a global conference call organised by Credit Suisse that AirAsia had a good partner in Tata and they were looking for an international licence.
It was reported that an AirAsia India spokesperson was not available for comments.
For the latest travel news and updates, Follow and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin!
Read also – Kerala CM requests Centre to resume flight services to Dubai
