United's earnings, business travel bookings boost shares

United Airlines say business travellers are booking flights at a faster clip than a year ago. The airline said Wednesday that business-travel bookings in the first week of January rose 11% from a year ago. On top of its quarterly earnings that beat expectations, the comments helped boost United's stock almost 7% in afternoon trading. CEO Oscar Munoz says the partial government shutdown isn't having a major impact, but the airline is watching the situation closely. United says occasional long security lines haven't caused it to delay flights. United reported Tuesday it earned $462 in Q4, down 20% from a year earlier but better than analysts expected.<br/>