DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Qatar Airways will sell its stake in Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific Airways in a share buyback valued at $896 million, the companies announced, ending the Qatari carrier's eight-year involvement with the airline.
The announcement came late Wednesday in a stock market filing by Cathay Pacific, which saw its shares gain 4.2% on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on Thursday.
Under the agreement, Qatar Airways will sell all of its holdings, which represent 9.57% of Cathay Pacific stock. The airline's other major shareholders are Swire Pacific and Air China. The plan is subject to shareholder approval.
“The buy-back reflects our strong confidence in the future of the Cathay Group and underscores our commitment to the development of the Hong Kong international aviation hub," Cathay Group chairman Patrick Healy said in a statement announcing the sale.
Qatar Airways, a state-owned airline flying out of the sprawling Hamad International Airport in Doha, did not acknowledge the sale itself. However, the Cathay Pacific statement included a comment from its CEO Badr Mohammed al-Meer saying the move represented the airline's “disciplined approach to portfolio management and our commitment to delivering sustainable value for our shareholders.”
"Following a period of record profitability and strong performance, this decision is part of a proactive strategy to optimize our investments and position the group for long-term growth," al-Meer said. Qatar Airways did not respond to questions from The Associated Press on Thursday.
Qatar Airways’ decision to divest likely had to do in part with its “limited strategic influence afforded by (its) minority stake,” DBS Bank analysts Tabitha Foo and Jason Sum said in an email.
The latest transaction also “further consolidates ownership among (Cathay’s) key shareholders, Swire Pacific and Air China”, they added, helping strengthen the firms' strategic control of the airline.
Qatar Airways bought its stake in Cathay Pacific in 2017 in a deal valued at the time around $662 million. Back then, Cathay Pacific faced financial losses and layoffs amid increasing competition from other airlines. The Hong Kong carrier posted a $1.2 billion profit in the last fiscal year.
Qatar Airways, along with Abu Dhabi-based Emirates and Dubai’s Emirates, are long-haul carriers that link East-West travel. Their location on the Arabian Peninsula between Europe and Asia have made them a key link in global transit. Qatar Airways also got a boost when the small, energy-rich nation hosted soccer’s 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Qatar Airways had struggled during a yearslong boycott by four Arab nations and the coronavirus pandemic. However, it soared to a $2.15 billion profit in its last fiscal year. Qatar Airways also has holdings in International Airlines Group, LATAM Airlines Group, China Southern Airlines, Virgin Australia and South Africa's Airlink.
Associated Press business writer Chan Ho-him in Hong Kong contributed to this report.
FILE - A Cathay Pacific airplane taxis at Hong Kong International Airport in Hong Kong on Nov. 25, 2022. (AP Photo/Vernon Yuen, File)
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — New Orleans’ mayor-elect said Friday that a federal immigration crackdown launched this week is already causing harm as encounters between masked agents and residents, including some caught on video, has prompted public backlash in the blue city.
Frustrated city officials pointed to the case of Jacelynn Guzman, a 23-year-old U.S. citizen who was walking back to her Louisiana home from a trip to the grocery store on Wednesday when a truck pulled up beside her and two masked federal agents approached her, according to security footage obtained by The Associated Press.
Guzman began running away as a second vehicle arrived and the agents pursued her down the sidewalk until she reached her family's home in Marrero, a neighborhood across the Mississippi River from downtown New Orleans. Guzman's mother has lived there her entire life.
“We’re legal, we are from here, born and raised,” Guzman shouted back at the agents. “Don’t chase me, that is disgusting.”
Guzman, who has no criminal record, told the AP that she panicked when agents approached.
“That was my only thought that they were going to take me and I wasn’t going to get to have a say in that decision,” Guzman said. “Because most likely they didn’t care that I was saying I was a U.S. citizen. So why would they care what else I had to say?”
Several hundred agents under Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino have converged on Southeast Louisiana this week as part of an immigration enforcement operation seeking to arrest 5,000 people. The Department of Homeland Security has touted dozens of arrests with only limited details released. Many Hispanic residents have said they feel their community is at risk of being abused or detained by agents regardless of their legal status.
Alongside city council members, Democratic Congressman Troy Carter, Hispanic leaders and civil rights advocates, Mayor-elect Helena Moreno expressed “deep concern over recent actions” by federal agents. She said the operation is causing harm — forcing businesses to shutter and workers to stay home out of fear of mass arrests.
While federal officials have repeatedly said the goal of the operation is to target dangerous criminals who entered the country illegally, Moreno argued “that does not appear to be the case.”
Moreno said she is asking for regular public briefings from federal agencies, which she asks includes data on the stops, detentions, charges, warrants, outcomes and if any of the people detained have violent criminal histories.
“Without this full visibility into these enforcement actions, it is impossible to determine whether this particular operation is actually targeting the most dangerous offenders,” Moreno said.
Guzman’s stepfather, Juan Anglin, said he understood federal agents had a job to do but believed they were going about it in the wrong way.
Anglin heard his stepdaughter screaming outside and went out to confront the agents. He told the AP that Guzman ran from the agents because she was a young woman surrounded by aggressive masked men.
“I thought she was going to be kidnapped, honestly,” Anglin said. “I thought somebody was going to hurt her."
In response to the incident, the Department of Homeland Security said Border Patrol had been searching for a “criminal illegal alien previously charged with felony theft and convicted of illegal possession of stolen property.”
DHS said the agents “encountered a female matching the description of the target” and that agents “identified themselves" and left when they realized Guzman was not who they were seeking.
Anglin disputes the government's narrative and says she was stopped solely because of her appearance.
“Just because you look brown, you look Hispanic, you're going to get stopped,” he said. “Because now it doesn’t matter if you have papers, you speak English or you are a citizen, it’s not enough."
Sara Cline contributed reporting from Baton Rouge.
Brook is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
Juan Anglin, who watched federal agents chase his step-daughter Jacelynn Guzman, a 23-year-old U.S. citizen, as she was walking on the sidewalk, stands outside his home in Marrero, La., Thursday, Dec. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Jack Brook)
