British Airways sees a slump in air traffic as downturn hits June 3, 2009 FLAG carrier British Airways (BA) said yesterday its premium passenger numbers for May tumbled 17.2 per cent, as airlines struggle to fill seats during the downturn. BA said its economy passenger numbers were down by only 4.2 per cent. Overall passenger numbers were down 6.5 per cent, suggesting the previous month’s rise may have been [...]
Ryanair falls to first ever annual loss June 2, 2009 BUDGET airline Ryanair reported its first ever annual loss yesterday, blaming high fuel costs and massive writedowns on the value of its stake in Irish rival Aer Lingus. The no-frills airline said its losses for the year to 31 March 2009 were €180.4m (£155m), down from a profit of €481m the previous year. The company [...]
WHERE DID RYANAIR GO WRONG ? June 2, 2009 RICHARD J HUNTER HARGREAVES LANSDOWNThere is some disappointment around the numbers, which have come in rather below market estimates. In terms of the figures, the Aer Lingus stake has proved to be something of an albatross around the company’s neck. It also had difficulty in hedging oil correctly over a turbulent period. DOUGLAS MCNEILL BLUE [...]
VEXED IN THE CITY SOLVING YOUR RECESSION PROBLEMS June 2, 2009 DEAR VEXED: A recent study said that attractive people go further at work. I’m working myself to the bone to hang in there but I have to be frank: I’m no looker. I’m overweight and haven’t been blessed with the best of faces – bit of a chinless wonder to be honest. What can I [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS June 1, 2009 RYANAIRAhead of Ryanair’s preliminary results, Collins Stewart has a “buy” recommendation on the airline. The broker expects a dramatic rebound on full-year 2010 profits as the company’s fuel bill falls. Aggressive fleet expansion remains a risk, said the analysts, but the firm continues to take market share from peers. TOPPS TILESGoldman Sachs upgraded its full-year [...]
Ryanair pursues pay cuts for Aer Lingus directors May 21, 2009 IRISH budget airline Ryanair kept up the pressure on arch rival Aer Lingus on Thursday with a campaign to extract large pay cuts from its chairman and non-executive directors. Ryanair, Aer Lingus’ biggest shareholder with a near 30 per cent stake, is proposing the former state carrier’s chairman Colin Barrington receive &1119;35,000 (£30,648) in pay [...]
BLANK’S CHELSEA APPEARANCE SETS CITY TONGUES WAGGING ON HIS HEIR May 18, 2009 ANY idea that the downturn would affect corporate hospitality at the Chelsea Flower Show, traditionally one of the biggest, most important corporate schmooze-fests of the year, was smashed to smithereens at last night’s gala preview opening. Chelsea veterans including Marks & Spencer boss Sir Stuart Rose, WPP chief executive Sir Martin Sorrell, ICAP billionaire Michael [...]
The firms the credit crunch has favoured August 11, 2008 The news about the worsening economy seems relentless and yet it is not all bad. As the credit crunch celebrates its first birthday, it’s clear that some companies are benefiting from a trend towards trading down. Consumers might be feeling the the pinch but budget options are becoming more appealing and companies such as Dominos, [...]
Passengers desert BA for cheap rivals August 7, 2008 British Airways carried 94,000 fewer passengers in July than in the same month last year. The airline blamed high oil prices, subsequent ticket price increases, and the worsening economic environment. The drop, during what is traditionally peak-season, came from non-premium ticket sales. Passenger load factor – the measurement of how full flights are – dropped [...]
Budget airlines have become a part of modern life, for better or worse August 1, 2008 Rising oil prices mean that cheap flights are under threat. But is that a good or a bad thing? Such arcane things as the price of oil were until recently beyond the ken of most ordinary folk. But the workings of massive Kazakh exploration companies and the politics of laying pipelines across Uzbekistan are now [...]