Shares of American jumped Tuesday after the company said that new credit-card deals will increase pretax income by US$1.55b over the next three years. Most airlines have a single credit card issuer, but American is taking a new route. It will continue offering credit cards from Citi, but it also struck a new agreement with Barclay's card business, which was the credit card provider for US Airways before that carrier merged with American in late 2013. All the cards will be MasterCards. American said the deals will increase pretax income by $200m this year, $550m next year, and $800m in 2018 compared with the current contracts. <br/>
oneworld
Qatar Airways has agreed to acquire up to 10% of LATAM Airlines, in a US$613m deal that requires the consent of existing shareholders at the Chile-based carrier. The deal follows Qatar Airways' purchase last year of 15% of British Airways owner IAG, which like Qatar and LATAM is a member of the oneworld airline alliance. The move is part of a rapid global expansion by the Doha-based airline, which is due to talk to Italian carrier Meridiana about the proposed purchase of a 49% stake. "As a leading airline in Latin America, and key member of oneworld, this investment provides potential opportunities for Qatar Airways' global network, alongside our successful investment in IAG," CE Akbar Al Baker said. <br/>