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Continental Airlines sees weak business travel
Tuesday March 10, 12:41 pm ET
By David Koenig, AP Airlines Writer Continental Airlines says business travel is falling off, plans more capacity cuts

DALLAS (AP) -- Continental Airlines Inc. says business travel seems to be falling off faster than leisure travel as companies cut travel budgets, and the carrier is cutting 2009 capacity more sharply.
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Shares of Continental rose $1.28, or 19.88 percent, to $7.52 in midday trading, lifted by a rally in the broader stock market and news that Delta will cut international capacity this fall.
Continental said Tuesday that it expects to reduce 2009 capacity between 4 and 5 percent, compared with an earlier plan for a reduction of 3.5 to 4.5 percent.
Last week, Houston-based Continental reported that traffic in February fell more than 13 percent.
On Tuesday, Continental President Jeffery Smisek said at an investor conference in New York that traffic across the Atlantic in particular has weakened and the company is cutting capacity on those routes by 6 to 7 percent -- more than the 4.7 percent shrinkage in February.
Smisek also said that the type of last-minute bookings favored by business travelers are slowing. Those tickets are usually higher priced. He said leisure bookings were holding up better.
Airline stocks rallied Tuesday, boosted by a rebound in the broader market and by news that Delta, the world's largest airline operator, will cut international capacity by another 10 percent in September after the peak summer travel season.
UBS analyst Kevin Crissey had said Monday that additional capacity cuts could boost the shares of airlines, which haven't had much to celebrate lately -- some airline stocks had fallen by more than half this year.

Not a huge additional cut. But when you are hoping for recalls any additional cut stinks!