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JAL

Japan Airlines rejects Delta, stays with American

TOKYO – Japan Airlines, wooed for months by Delta Air Lines with promises of cash and global reach, spurned the world’s biggest carrier and opted to keep its alliance with American Airlines.
The Japanese carrier said Tuesday it will strengthen its partnership with American. The two airlines will jointly seek government [...]

Read More » No commentFebruary 10, 2010

Problems at Toyota, JAL taint Japan Inc.’s image

TOKYO – Toyota is the latest Japanese corporate icon making headlines for all the wrong reasons.
News of the automaker’s massive vehicle recalls over faulty gas pedals in the U.S. came just days after Japan Airlines, a once proud flag carrier, filed for bankruptcy, saddled with billions in debt.
Sony has lost its lead in consumer gadgets [...]

Read More » No commentJanuary 31, 2010

Factbox: JAL restructuring plan under state-backed fund

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan Airlines Corp has filed for bankruptcy and will be restructured with the help of a state-backed turnaround fund, the Enterprise Turnaround Initiative Corp of Japan (ETIC).
Following are the key figures and measures in the fund’s revival plan. This includes information from the ETIC’s statement and a document provided by the government.
FINANCIAL [...]

Read More » No commentJanuary 19, 2010

Up in the air: Can JAL’s fortunes be turned around?

Investors have driven Japan Airlines (JAL) shares into the floor, desperate to sell before they lose their shirts.
The price hit 7 yen, just 8 US cents, a new record intraday low. A year ago it was 213 yen.
The selling has been unstoppable, pushing the airline towards the sixth biggest bankruptcy in Japanese history.
That this is [...]

Read More » No commentJanuary 19, 2010

JAL troubles test Japan government’s resolve

Japan Airlines has been struggling for years and has been bailed out repeatedly since 2001.
But this time the national flag carrier is getting what has been described here as “tough love”, and that says a lot about Japan’s new government and its priorities.
The Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), led by Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, came [...]

Read More » No commentJanuary 19, 2010

Japan Airlines shares hit new record low of 5 yen

Shares in the troubled carrier Japan Airlines (JAL) have plunged to a record low of 5 yen (6 cents, 3 pence) ahead of an expected bankruptcy filing.
The bankruptcy is part of a government bail-out that is likely to be announced on Tuesday, reports say.
The company, which lost about $1.5bn in the six months to September, [...]

Read More » No commentJanuary 19, 2010

JAL succumbs to self-inflicted wounds

Tokyo, Japan (FT) — “I’d like to take a pistol and shoot every JAL executive of the last 20 years,” says Hideo Fujiwara, an otherwise gently spoken 72-year-old.
The former pilot flew for Japan Airlines, which is filing for bankruptcy on Tuesday, for 34 years but will see his monthly pension shrink by 40 per cent [...]

Read More » No commentJanuary 19, 2010

JAL agrees tie-up deal with Delta

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan Airlines (JAL) has agreed on a tie-up with Delta Air Lines that will mean JAL joins the SkyTeam airline alliance, dropping its membership of the Oneworld alliance, a Japanese newspaper said on Saturday.
JAL and Delta agreed the deal in Tokyo on Friday, the Yomiuri newspaper said, and plan to complete the [...]

Read More » No commentJanuary 16, 2010

JAL draws on emergency funds as bankruptcy looms

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan Airlines Corp moved a step closer to bankruptcy on Friday by drawing down $1.6 billion in emergency funding and with the Prime Minster set to decide on when the carrier will start a state-led restructuring.
Asia’s largest airline by revenues, but whose market value has collapsed to below that of budget carrier [...]

Read More » No commentJanuary 15, 2010

JAL’s zen pilot

The next boss of beleagured Japan Airlines is a 77-year-old ordained zen monk who founded multi-billion dollar tech and telecoms companies, and – unlike most Japanese corporate peers – actually backed the current ruling party.
Kazuo Inamori, honorary chairman of electronics parts maker Kyocera and critic of many modern CEOs as well as capitalism’s excesses (think an older Michael Moore at Kyoto’s Ginkakuji), says he will take [...]

Read More » No commentJanuary 14, 2010