New Delhi: SpiceJet shares took a beating on Wednesday after aviation regulator DGCA decided to ground Boeing 737 MAX 8 planes amid safety concerns. However, airline stocks showed mixed trends as debt-laden Jet Airways closed in the red while no-frills airline IndiGo gained.
The scrip of SpiceJet, which has 12 MAX 8 aircraft in its fleet, tumbled 8 per cent in intra-day trading but managed to recoup losses to close little over 2 per cent lower at Rs 77.15 on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). The company’s shares opened on a weak note and had slumped 7.99 per cent to touch an intra-day low of Rs 72.50.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) decision on Tuesday to ground MAX 8 planes comes after a crash of such an aircraft in Ethiopia killed 157 people on Sunday. Following the move, SpiceJet has grounded all its 12 MAX 8 aircraft resulting in flight cancellations.
Jet Airways has 5 such planes but all of them are already grounded. Shares of Jet Airways fell 2.06 per cent to end the day at Rs 240.60 on the BSE and had shed nearly 4 per cent in intra-day trade. The shares fell 1.67 per cent to close at Rs 240.80 on the National Stock Exchange (NSE).
“Consequent to the regulatory directive on the Boeing 737 MAX, SpiceJet has already initiated grounding of its MAX fleet,” the airline said in a statement on Wednesday. IndiGo, the country’s largest airline in terms of market, saw its shares jump 2.11 per cent to Rs 1,301.45 on the BSE. It went up over 2 per cent to end at Rs 1,296.25 on the NSE. IndiGo does not have Boeing planes in its fleet.
