Smooth take-off for aviation stocks unlikely
NEW DELHI: Early last week when aviation minister Hardeep Singh Puri announced that India would open its domestic sky from May 25, the move was widely welcomed by the crises-hit aviation sector who had little or nothing to receive from the government’s Rs 20 lakh crore stimulus package. Soon after, share prices of IndiGo and SpiceJet jumped and immediate bookings in large numbers were made by passengers.
The excitement, however, was short-lived. Stringent quarantine norms announced by some states and restriction on flight operation caused immense pain to passengers on day one. As many as 630 flights were cancelled on day one. The chaos and difficulty in resuming operations dented gains made by stocks last week. Share prices of Indigo and SpicetJet fell 3.40 per cent and 2.22 per cent, respectively on the BSE on Tuesday.
