Singapore Airlines boosts stake in Virgin Australia

Singapore Airlines has lifted its stake in Virgin Australia amid uncertainty over the future ownership of the Australian carrier. The move comes as The Australian Financial Review's Street Talk column on Thursday reported SIA was viewed as the most likely buyer of Air New Zealand's 25.9% stake in Virgin. In an announcement to the Singapore Stock Exchange on Wednesday evening, the Singaporean carrier said it now owned 23.11% of Virgin, up from 22.91% previously. SIA said it had elected to physically settle a series of equity swaps it had entered into with a counter-party at a cost of $3.18m, or 46.72¢ a share. That represents a significant premium to Virgin's closing price of 35.5¢ on Wednesday. Singapore Airlines is the third-largest shareholder in Virgin behind Air NZ with 25.9% and Etihad Airways with 25.1%. As of January, SIA had Foreign Investment Review Board approval for a stake of 25.9%. It is unknown whether it has sought approvals for an even higher stake.<br/>