|
CNBC'S MOST SHARED
- Investing in Tech Now
- Warren Buffett Tells CNBC Consumer Sales Remain "Very, Very Soft"
- Software Giants Rush to Cash In on Carbon Counting
- Preparing for Retirement
- What You'll See On My NASCAR Documentary Tonight
- Warren Buffett's Complete Sun Valley CNBC Interview - Transcript and Video
- Microsoft Plays a Game of Bing Pong
- How exactly does Twitter plan on making money?
- Playing by Different Rules
- Nikkei on Track to Break 6-Day Losing Streak
- GM CEO Vows Leaner and Better Company To Emerge
- GM CFO Young: No Positive Cash Flow Until 2009
- Geithner Seeks Clampdown on Derivatives Dealers
- Consumers' Mood Sours in Early July
- Less Demand for Fed's Emergency Backstops
- Claims Total Over 15,400 in Fraud by Madoff
- JPMorgan Asks Treasury to Auction Warrants
- UBS Can't Comply with US Request: Internal Memo
- Cisco Cutting up to 2,000 Jobs, Analyst Says
- Schork Oil Outlook: It’s Now or Never for the Bulls
- Social Networking's 'Naked' Truth
- Farrell: Let's Enjoy the Numbers for a Moment
- Call Of Shame - Vote Now
- Schmidt on Social Media, Ads and Hulu
- 15 Stocks to Consider
- Maximum Bob Goes Full Throttle For GM
- Najarian: Options Get Bullish on Cisco
- Sun Valley on Social Media
The chief executive officer of Delta Air Lines said Friday that his airline's pending merger with Northwest Airlines is on track and should be in force by next year.
"We're very confident with regulators that we're going to get approval by the end of the year," Delta CEO Richard Anderson said on CNBC's "Squawk Box."
Delta Air Lines [DAL
Loading...
()
] and Northwest Airlines Corp [NWA
Loading...
()
] said in April they planned to merge. The move would make the world's largest airline.
Proponents of the merger believe it would counter rising fuel prices and growing competition from European carriers as trade barriers fall on trans-Atlantic travel.
"The airlines that are in existence today are all a product of consolidation," said Anderson. (See his full interview in the accompanying video).
But skeptics have argued that getting larger may not be the answer.
"It is a very tough business," Anderson admitted. "There's no question about it, and if you look at the history of the business since deregulation, I think Warren Buffett had once said that it's a business he wouldn't invest in, because of the cyclicality, but, that's really what our challenge is. Our challenge is to change the business model in a way that creates a lot more durable franchise, and that's what we're about."
Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said, in a report on how United States airlines are coping with rising jet fuel prices, that the proposed merger of Delta and Northwest Airlines offers potential financial gains, but also material risks.
"We believe overall, it probably isn't as beneficial as its supporters promise or as dire as its critics suggest," said Philip Baggaley, Standard & Poor's senior airline credit analyst.
The Delta-Northwest combination may lead off a whole round of consolidation. United Airlines has begun talks with Continental Airlines Inc [CAL
Loading...
()
] for a possible alliance even as its merger talks with US Airways [
Loading...
()
] continue to advance, sources briefed on the matter said. American Airlines [AMR
Loading...
()
] is also believed to be talking to possible partners.
Click here for more about possible airline mergers.
-- Wire services contributed to this report.









