KUALA LUMPUR: Shares of AirAsia Group Bhd and Capital A Bhd came under selling pressure on Monday after reports that the Finance Ministry has appointed an adviser to assess the aviation group's funding requirements.
At 11.11am, Capital A fell 1.5 sen or 4.84 per cent to 29.5 sen, with 29.69 million shares changing hands, making it the fifth most actively traded counter on Bursa Malaysia.
The stock opened at 31 sen and fell to an intraday low of 28.5 sen, giving the company a market capitalisation of RM1.32 billion.
AirAsia Group, meanwhile, declined 3.5 sen or 4.96 per cent to 67 sen, with 15.66 million shares traded. It opened at 70 sen and touched an intraday low of 65.5 sen. The counter was the ninth most actively traded stock on the exchange.
At 67 sen, the company had a market capitalisation of RM2.25 billion.
The sell-off came after Reuters reported on Sept 3 that the Finance Ministry had hired an adviser to assess the aviation company's funding needs, signalling that the government is weighing potential support for the airline group.
According to the report, considerations include the public interest and the wider economic impact of the aviation company.
The development comes as AirAsia Group is pursuing fundraising exercises comprising up to US$1 billion in international debt markets and RM700 million in local credit facilities.
In a statement on Sept 2, the group said the fundraising was primarily aimed at debt restructuring, refinancing and balance sheet consolidation, rather than solely addressing operational funding shortfalls.
It said the strategy was in line with its previously announced plans to optimise its capital structure.
The group said it had successfully raised about US$300 million in March 2026, despite heightened global market volatility and fuel price uncertainty, to extend debt maturities and reduce principal obligations.
It said the latest funding strategy was aimed at consolidating multiple existing facilities into a single, lower-cost debt structure with longer maturities and more favourable terms.
The exercise would also enable the group to refinance higher-cost debt incurred during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Year to date, Capital A's share price has fallen 28.04 per cent, while AirAsia Group has declined 62.7 per cent.