AirAsia Bhd's group chief executive, Tony Fernandes, dismissed a media report that the Malaysian carrier is weighing a bid for Japan's Skymark Airlines Inc.
"Never seen such rubbish. AirAsia has no interest in Skymark in Japan," Fernandes, co-founder of the budget airline, wrote on Twitter on Tuesday.
Skymark's shares jumped 28 percent after the Nikkei business daily reported that AirAsia is in talks with financial institutions on a possible tender offer for the struggling carrier.
"We focused on new airline," Fernandes said in a Twitter message. Last month, AirAsia said it would set up a low-cost airline with Japan's biggest online retailer, Rakuten, and other companies.
Skymark last month warned of uncertainty about its ability to stay in business if it had to pay penalties to Airbus for the failing to follow through on an order for six A380 superjumbos. It had been unable to get financing for the deal.
Skymark said Airbus was demanding "an extraordinary amount of compensation" for the cancellation.
Skymark last month also reported a sharply wider loss and said it would take steps to improve its financial situation, including exiting unprofitable routes and borrowing from financial institutions.
Here's Fernandes' tweet: