Shares of United Airlines’ parent company, United Continental Holdings Inc., fell about three per cent Tuesday morning in the wake of the forcible removal of a passenger from an overbooked flight Sunday evening.
Shares of United Continental Holdings Inc. closed at $71.52 Monday and dropped to $68.65 after North American markets opened Tuesday morning.
The company’s shares were already taking a hit early Tuesday when Chinese markets opened for trading.
As MarketWatch points out, a three per cent drop in the company’s would wipe about US$675 million wiped from its $22.5 billion market value.
Approaching midday trading, shares had dipped to a low of $68.39 before rebounding to $69.75 at 1 p.m. ET.
Video of Sunday night`s incident at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, shows a bloodied man being forcefully dragged off an overbooked United Express flight.
READ MORE: United Airlines passenger dragged off overbooked flight after refusing to give up seat
The treatment of the man prompted backlash on social media while many called for a boycott of United Airlines.
WATCH: White House comments on ‘troubling’ United Airlines video
United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz issued a brief statement, calling the incident “upsetting.”
“I apologize for having to re-accommodate these customers. Our team is moving with a sense of urgency to work with the authorities and conduct our own detailed review of what happened,” Munoz said in the statement. “We are also reaching out to this passenger to talk directly to him and further address and resolve this situation.”
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