[Featured Stock] T'way Air, Suppressed Air Travel Demand Explodes... Eastar Jet Hopes to Acquire Over 10 Companies

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyungsoo Park] T'way Air is showing strong performance. The stock price appears to be influenced by expectations that travel demand, suppressed due to COVID-19, will recover, along with the successful sale news of Eastar Jet.

As of 9:36 a.m. on the 2nd, T'way Air is trading at 3,795 KRW, up 14.65% from the previous day.

Fueled by expectations of normalization, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) investing in domestic travel and leisure-related companies have recorded high returns over the past month.

According to the Korea Exchange on the 2nd, among ETFs tracking the stock prices of domestic listed companies since the 3rd of last month, the ETF with the highest return was 'TIGER Travel Leisure.' The one-month return was 18.11%.

According to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, the government is reviewing a plan to allow travel between countries by signing agreements with countries that have excellent quarantine measures. Signs of travel demand recovery are appearing not only domestically but also overseas.

From the 1st of next month, a digital vaccine passport will be introduced throughout the European Union (EU). Accordingly, EU residents who have received the COVID-19 vaccine will be able to move within the region without undergoing a separate quarantine period. Our government recently requested the EU to start practical work for mutual recognition of vaccine inoculation.

Along with expectations for travel demand recovery, the sale of Eastar Jet is also one of the major issues in the aviation industry. It is known that about ten companies, including Harim Group and Ssangbangwool Group, participated in the preliminary bidding for Eastar Jet, which is undergoing corporate rehabilitation procedures. Kim Hong-guk, chairman of Harim Group, has a strong will to grow into a comprehensive logistics company through the acquisition of Eastar Jet. In an interview with the media regarding the acquisition of Eastar Jet, Chairman Kim said, "Harim Group itself has secured 700 billion to 800 billion KRW in funds, including 190 billion KRW reserved from Pan Ocean," adding, "Although some financial procurement will be necessary, there will be no problems."