Is Wizz Air truly in trouble, or is it all a bluff? Investors dump shares after Ryanair boss’s warning

Of course, this isn’t Michael O’Leary’s first broadside at Wizz Air. The two airlines are fierce rivals dominating Eastern Europe’s skies, so it’s no surprise the Ryanair chief is stirring up trouble for the Hungarian upstart. The real question is: why did the markets bite?

Wizz Air in peril? Shares sold off in droves

Ryanair’s boss has long prophesied doom for Wizz Air. Michael O’Leary— who only recently praised Orbán’s government for scrapping that passenger levy dubbed the ‘extra-profits tax’ last October—once declared the Hungarian low-cost carrier’s bankruptcy or buyout inevitable. He slammed its colossal blunder of flogging planes during Covid, only to lease them back now. O’Leary also panned last year’s strategic pivot as misguided, with its Middle East and Asian expansion a flop; he boasted that Ryanair has Europe sewn up anyway.

The numbers don’t back O’Leary’s claims—Wizz Air keeps flying, announcing fresh summer routes that we’ve been covering. But the Ryanair chief has piped up again, predicting bankruptcy for both Wizz Air and Air Baltic by October or November. Both carriers deny it, yet investors went berserk on the Budapest and London stock exchanges. Shares plunged 2% today, reports Világgazdaság.

Fuel shortages to do for Ryanair boss’s theory

O’Leary pins Wizz Air’s woes on soaring fuel prices from the Iranian war, claiming it failed to lock in supplies in time. Ryanair, by contrast, hedged a hefty chunk of its kerosene needs early—at rock-bottom prices.

‘Michael O’Leary’s recent statements on Wizz Air’s financial outlook are clearly untrue and false,’ retorted the Hungarian budget airline. ‘Wizz Air’s finances are stable, with substantial liquidity.’ It noted planes are financed 18 months ahead, and—unlike rivals—it’s hedged a bigger slice of fuel needs via prior options deals. That shields it from wild price swings. Air Baltic merely said it’s monitoring events and plans to keep flying as scheduled.

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Soaring ticket prices shock Hungarian travellers of Wizz Air