China Airlines Ltd (CAL, 中華航空), the nation’s biggest air carrier, plans to sell as much as NT$3 billion (US$92 million) in bonds and create 600 million new shares to repay debt and boost its working capital.
The bonds will be sold in a private placement, while the shares will be offered to the public, the Taipei-based airline said in statements to the Taiwan Stock Exchange yesterday.
The board also approved the sale of three-year bonds with an annual interest rate of 3.4 percent and five-year bonds with a 3.6 percent interest rate, it said.
CAL plans to raise funds after posting losses for six consecutive quarters because of losses from bets on fuel prices and slowing cargo and passenger demand amid the global recession. The carrier also won shareholder approval on May 18 to sell as many as 1 billion new shares in a private placement.
CAL shares fell 0.1 percent to close at NT$8.6 in Taipei trading. The benchmark TAIEX index climbed 0.28 percent.
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