Qantas posts A$1.6b profit but shares fall
Nasser had said last month a Sabic deal would affect the timeframe for the IPO.
The IPO process started in January 2016, when the crown prince said Riyadh was considering selling shares in Aramco, kicking off a deal set to be the world’s largest-ever flotation.
For almost two years, Saudi officials repeatedly said the IPO was “on track, on time” for the second half of this year.
They said earlier this year it would be delayed into next year. In May, al-Falih said the sale would “most likely” happen next year.
The proposed deal for Aramco to buy a stake in Sabic from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, which was announced last month, marked a shift in emphasis.
PIF’s stake is worth about US$70 billion (RM180 billion), and Aramco is said to be considering an international bond to finance the deal.
The international IPO is proving difficult for several reasons. The crown prince had said Aramco should be valued at US$2 trillion or more, but some analysts put the figure much lower.
Saudi authorities are also struggling to reconcile their desire for the biggest possible pool of capital, likely in New York or London, with their preference for less-stringent regulation, which would point to Hong Kong. CANBERRA: Australia’s Qantas Airways posted a record annual profit, powered by its domestic business, but its shares fell on concerns about rising fuel prices despite the carrier saying it would be able to mitigate its impact.
Qantas forecast an A$690 million (RM2.07 billion) increase in its fuel bill for the current financial year but chief executive officer Alan Joyce said the airline should be able to fully recover rising fuel costs in the domestic market and do so substantially in the international market.
Investors, however, were less sure. Shares fell as much as 7.7 per cent in early trading, although losses narrowed to 2.4 per cent by early afternoon after the management team reiterated the positive outlook on an analyst call.
The airline’s underlying pretax profit, its most closely watched measure, rose to A$1.6 billion for the 12 months ended June 30, from A$1.4 billion a year earlier. That was in line with analysts’ expectations. It also announced an A$332 million stock buyback programme.