TOKYO (Reuters) - Shares of Japan's Skymark Airlines Inc jumped 28 percent on Tuesday after the Nikkei business daily reported that Malaysia's AirAsia Bhd is in talks with financial institutions on a possible tender offer for the struggling carrier.
Skymark last month warned of uncertainty about its ability to stay in business if it had to pay penalties to Airbus for the failing to follow through on an order for six A380 superjumbos. It had been unable to get financing for the deal.
Skymark said Airbus was demanding "an extraordinary amount of compensation" for the cancellation.
Skymark's shares were up by their daily limit of 50 yen at 230 yen in early trade in Tokyo, compared with a five-year low of 153 yen set last week.
Skymark had yet to release a statement to the Tokyo Stock Exchange in response to the report. In a post on its website, the bourse cautioned the company for lack of information.
Representatives for Skymark and AirAsia were not immediately available for comment.
AirAsia, one of the most aggressive budget airlines in Asia, last month said it would set up a low-cost airline with Japan's biggest online retailer Rakuten Inc and other firms, marking its second attempt to tap the Japanese market.
Skymark last month also reported a sharply wider loss and said it would take steps to improve its financial situation, including exiting unprofitable routes and borrowing from financial institutions.
(Reporting by Chris Gallagher in Tokyo and Yantoultra Ngui in Kuala Lumpur; Editing by Chang-Ran Kim and Edwina Gibbs)