Deals

Cathay Buys Hong Kong Express to Enter Budget Airline Market

Transaction expected to be completed by end of this year
Cathay to pay $287 million cash; deal includes debt payment

Bloomberg Intelligence’s Rahul Kapoor explains what the purchase of Hong Kong’s only budget carriermeans for Cathay. (Source: Bloomberg)

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By Kyunghee Park

March 27, 2019 at 12:29 AM UTC

Updated on

March 27, 2019 at 2:14 AM UTC

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Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. agreed to pay HK$2.25 billion ($287 million) in cash for Hong Kong’s only budget airline to enter the no-frills market, after more than a decade resisting such a move to focus on premium services.

Cathay plans to operate Hong Kong Express Airways Ltd., part of HNA Group Co., as a standalone carrier after the transaction is completed by Dec. 31, the flag carrier said.