Airline shares experienced a sharp decline on Monday as the US and Israel's weekend strikes on Iran disrupted global travel and sent oil prices surging. Major carriers including Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific, Australia's Qantas Airways, Singapore Airlines, and Japan Airlines saw significant drops of over 5 percent.
Key Middle Eastern travel hubs, including Dubai and Doha, remained closed for a third day, stranding tens of thousands of passengers. Oil prices jumped 7 percent, reaching multi-month highs due to increased attacks in the region and disruptions to tanker shipments.
Shares in Qantas initially fell 10.4 percent, reaching a 10-month low, before recovering slightly. Other Asian carriers like ANA Holdings, Air China, China Southern Airlines, China Eastern Airlines, AirAsia X, China Airlines, and EVA Airways all saw declines of at least 4 percent.
Cathay Pacific canceled all flights to the Middle East, including services to Dubai and Riyadh, until further notice. Singapore Airlines suspended flights to and from Dubai through March 7, while Japan Airlines halted Tokyo-Doha routes. Air India canceled numerous flights to European destinations due to airspace restrictions.
Data indicates that Chinese mainland airlines have canceled 26.5 percent of flights to and from the Middle East for the week of March 2 to March 8. The conflict's ripple effects are causing significant disruption for travelers worldwide, with major airports like Dubai and Doha impacted.