Qantas says foreign ownership cap could make fleet overhaul harder
'chairman Leigh Clifford said the Qantas Sale Act, which caps foreign ownership at 49 per cent of shares, was still holding it back, including in its ability to raise capital'.
An admitted aviation light weight, Mr. Clifford claims it is the foreign ownership that 'restricts' Qantas raising capital.
In simple arithmetic Qantas bought back its own shares to the value of
$1.24 billion (all on market). With another $500 million of 'capital giveback' there is almost
$1.75 billion with which to find capital to buy a fleet.
Of course share buy backs have a dubious history. Forbes magazine which am sure you have a copy of did a number of pieces about the dubious nature of the practice.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/aalsin/.../#73e619476b1e
It isn't legislation stopping Qantas buying a fleet, it was executive bonuses and the option vesting dates! With share prices 23% lower, of course someone/something else is the reason why Qantas lacks a modern fleet of long range twins.