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NEW YORK — Investors sold off airline shares Friday morning as the broader market managed some small gains. Airline stocks have been steadily rising over the past couple of weeks along with the rest of the market as hopes grow for an economic recovery.
The AMEX Airlines Index dropped 2.8 percent, with 11 of 13 component stocks lower. The index has risen about 18 percent in the last two weeks.
The price of a barrel of crude fell 30 cents to $72.17 on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Jet fuel is one of the airlines' biggest costs.
Shares of AMR Corp., parent of American Airlines, lost 53 cents, or 6 percent, at $8.27 after double-digit gains on Thursday. AMR got almost $3 billion dollars in additional financing, easing concerns the carrier could face a cash crunch later this year because of soft passenger demand and falling revenue.
Continental Airlines shares gave up 61 cents, or 3.8 percent, at $15.71. Continental said Thursday that it's seeing better sales of higher-priced tickets, but traffic was still down from a year ago in July and August.
Delta Air Lines fell 34 cents, or 3.7 percent, to $8.82. U.S. Airways lost 20 cents, or 3.9 percent, at $4.93. UAL Corp., parent of United Airlines, dropped 21 cents, or 2.4 percent, to $8.39.
AirTran Airways fell 21 cents, or 3.2 percent, to $6.46. Alaska Air gave up 46 cents at $26.22. JetBlue dropped 19 cents, or 2.9 percent, at $6.28. SkyWest was off a penny at $18.03.
Southwest Airlines rose 3 cents to $9.73. Republic Airways added 5 cents at $10.20.
