Posting a first-half loss on Wednesday, Macquarie Airports (MAP), a fund managed by Australian investment bank Macquarie has said that it will significantly reduce its stakes in two airports to cut debt. If implemented, this move is expected to send up the shares up nearly 10 percent.

According to MAP, the said plan would assist in funding a share buyback of up to AUD$1 billion (USD$872 million) and considerably help the firm further boost up its share price, which had miserably fallen so far by around one-third during this year.

The present initiatives by the firm simply meant MAP is not after chasing any upcoming privatization efforts pertaining to airports in the short term. The company cited the examples of the lease of Chicago's Midway Airport and Prague Airport in this regard.

The pullback of MAP from investing in new airport projects ensues as the investors found battering infrastructure and real estate funds shares to well below their asset values. In addition, the investors are also shunning those groups that are heavily exposed to debt amidst the global credit crunch.

Notably, Macquarie purchases assets like ports and utilities to bundle them into classes of listed and unlisted funds to earn the fees for management.

During a briefing, chief executive Kerrie Mather noted, "While it is not our policy to comment on speculation regarding investment opportunities, the actions we have announced today are clearly inconsistent with seeking any significant participation in any major investment opportunity in the short term, such as Chicago Midway.”