Norwegian Air under pressure to boost finances

Norwegian Air faces mounting pressure to control costs and shore up its balance sheet to weather fierce competition. The airline has embarked on an ambitious expansion plan buying more than 200 new fuel-efficient jets yet investors worry its drive to put more passengers on more planes is pushing up costs quickly without producing higher returns. Doubts are creeping in because Norwegian's fate rests on the still unproven strategy of adapting the success of low-cost short-haul travel to long-haul routes, as well as making a parallel bet on leasing out jets to rival carriers pay off. Its shares have dropped 38% in 2017 bucking the industry trend and, according to Norway's Financial Supervisory Authority, investors have taken out bets on price falls with 5.35m of its shares, or 14.9% of its capital. <br/>