WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. airline shares fell on Friday on new concerns about unrelenting fuel cost pressures as global oil prices moved higher again.
A new Wall Street forecast of widening quarterly losses for the airlines further stoked the view that a steep decline in fuel costs appears the only way for some carriers to avoid bankruptcy.
US Airways Group Inc (LCC.N:
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United Airlines, a unit of UAL Corp (UAUA.O:
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Continental Airlines Inc (CAL.N:
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Delta Air Lines Inc (DAL.N:
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and American Airlines, a unit of AMR Corp (AMR.N:
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Overall, the Amex airline index .XAL was off 3.5 percent as global crude prices rose to over $132 a barrel on a weaker dollar and nagging concerns about production. The airline index had fallen nearly 5 percent earlier in the session.
Airline stocks had rallied on Thursday on a 3 percent drop in oil prices.
Analysts and industry insiders have been increasingly pessimistic about the outlook for U.S. airlines despite recent revenue gains in a weakening economy.
"I do think the industry is probably facing its biggest crisis perhaps in modern history, even bigger than the horrible days of 9/11," said Patrick Murphy, of aviation consulting firm Gerchick-Murphy Associates.
Quarterly loss forecasts from Wall Street have worsened significantly for some carriers, including United, US Airways and American.
"Some of the losses we forecast are very large," UBS analyst Kevin Crissey said.
Rick Seaney, chief executive of airline ticket research site FareCompare.com, said fare increases are working. "But the problem is they can't even remotely cope with the increase in the price of fuel," he said
Analysts paint a bleaker long-term picture absent steep capacity cuts, higher fares and dramatically lower fuel prices.
In a research note to clients earlier this week from JP Morgan analyst Jamie Baker, US Airways topped the list of major carriers at risk for bankruptcy. Northwest was second, followed by United.
Crissey's note also said the value of shares currently are based on the chance that "fuel prices plummet" before carriers must seek bankruptcy protection.
To help offset high fuel prices, Northwest said on Friday it plans to raise fuel surcharges in certain markets for cargo flights beginning in June, pending regulatory clearance.
(Reporting by John Crawley and Mark McSherry; Editing by Tim Dobbyn)