Airline stocks have tumbled on Monday following a spike in oil prices due to the war in Iran, which has constrained global oil supply.
European airlines’ shares opened much lower on March 9, as investors continued selling shares in industries particularly exposed to oil price fluctuations. Wizz Air, for example, closed the day of trading on March 6 at £9.46 ($12.63), opening on March 9 at £8.55 ($11.35).
Air France-KLM, International Airlines Group (IAG), and Lufthansa Group shares opened the day trading 4.1%, 4.4%, and 3.9% lower than their closing price on March 6. Ryanair's opening price was down 3.3%.
While holding up slightly better than their European counterparts, the major US airlines have also seen double-digit drops in their share price in recent days.
The Arca Airline Index, which is traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and is “designed to measure the performance of highly capitalized and liquid international airline companies,” has lost more than 16% of its value since February 27.
Meanwhile, S&P Global said Brent futures were trading at $114.28 per barrel in the early morning hours of March 9. When the International Air Transport Association (IATA) published its 2026 outlook in December 2025, it estimated that the average Brent crude oil price would be $62 per barrel during the year, allowing the airline industry to offset “softer yields” and growth in non-fuel costs, which had begun to moderate.
“In 2026, operating margins are expected to edge up to 6.9%, while net margins should be stable at 3.9%,” it said, compared to the estimated operating and net margins of 6.6% and 3.9%, respectively, in 2025.
