Germany-based Tui Travel, which owns UK high street brands Thomson and First Choice, has announced a 73-per-cent fall in third quarter profit in the three months to 30 June, with profits falling from £11 million to just £3 million. The firm has blamed several reasons for the drop, including the Easter bank holiday being earlier than normal, and slow sales in the French market. Nonetheless, chief executive Peter Long said in a statement that followed the announcement of the results: “Summer 2012 volumes have improved in most key markets since our last update. We are seeing strong demand and late margins for the peak summer period.†He added: “Our winter 2012-2013 programme has had an encouraging start.†Bad weather in in the UK since June has led to increased sales for other sectors of the travel industry as well, with low-cost airline easyJet announcing that its own quarterly sales had been boosted by Britons booking last-minute flights to Spain and Portugal to escape the rain. Despite this lift, Thomas Cook in the UK remains in difficulty, reporting a third-quarter drop in revenue of six per cent to £2.29 billion. New chief executive Harriet Green said: “The group has been through a difficult period, but much has been achieved, which has strengthened the balance sheet and improved liquidity. The strength of the group’s brands and the quality of its businesses and people provides a foundation from which to bring the business back to full strength.†In July, financial results were announced by International Airlines Group, representing British Airways and Iberia, which saw group traffic measured in revenue passenger kilometres rise by 5.1 per cent compared to July 2011. Group premium traffic grew by 1.5 per cent in July, while there was also a 5.6-per-cent increase in non-premium traffic. ShareThis Powered By iWebRSS.co.cc
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