Tui: Record revenue boosts travel giant before it takes flight from London
Tui has reported record revenue in its half-year results amid booming demand for travel and not long before it takes flight from London markets for Germany.
The travel giant netted €8bn (£6.9bn) in first half revenue, up 15.2 per cent year-on-year, as holidaymakers opted for getaways as Spring approached.
Some 2.8m guests travelled with Tui in the reporting period, 14 per cent more than in the previous year and at an average load factor of 93 per cent.
Pre-tax losses narrowed from €648.8m to €403.1m over what is a typically quieter period for of the year the travel industry.
Shares rose 1.57 per cent by mid-morning.
Tui chief Sebastian Ebel said: “Travelling is very popular. The trends are intact. We see growth opportunities in new markets, through a broader offering and additional target groups.
“The transformation of the segments remains a central component of our strategy. The first two quarters of the year were very successful in operational terms. This underlines our strength in growing profitably in a dynamic market environment.
“We are aware of the ongoing challenges in the geopolitical environment and confirm our expectations regarding revenue and earnings growth.”
Summer bookings are looking strong, with 60 per cent of the programme already sold and prices around four per cent higher year-on-year.
Greece, Turkey and the Balearic Islands are currently the most popular destinations for summer holidays. Bookings in the UK are currently three per cent higher.
It comes just a month before Tui shares are struck off the London Stock Exchange for a final time, as it shifts its listing to Frankfurt.
It joins a growing list of firms who have considered or fully committed to moving from the UK capital due to liquidity struggles, including the likes of Darktrace, Flutter, Shell and YouGov.
Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “The winter booking season ended strongly, helping reduce losses at the group more quickly than expected.
“The dismally wet weather in key markets may well have helped boost demand for breaks in the sun, with revenue soaring 16 per cent in the second quarter.
She added: “The hike in prices isn’t putting off holidaymakers, with families ringfencing budgets for a spot on the sun lounger. The signs are that bookings are set to remain robust. Recent data from Barclaycard for April showed that although overall retail spending dipped, transactions at travel agents soared 14.4 per cent while spend jumped by more than 7 per cent.”