U.S. Airlines Tumble After Buffett Abandons Bet on Industry

U.S. airline stocks plummeted Monday after Warren Buffett dumped his stakes in the four biggest carriers, saying the industry’s prospects had been upended by the coronavirus pandemic.

The airline industry has been one of the hardest hit sectors amid the Covid-19 outbreak that has decimated air travel, with countries and cities around the globe imposing lockdown measures in an effort to tackle the spread of the infection. The S&P Supercomposite Airlines Industry Index has fallen about 60% since Feb. 20 when the broader virus-related sell-off began, while the S&P 500 Index is down about 16% over the same period.

Shares of United Airlines Holdings Inc., American Airlines Group Inc., Delta Air Lines Inc. and Southwest Airlines Co. were among the biggest decliners on the nine-member index that dropped as much as 12% Monday.