Sun-seeking British passengers put a shine on EasyJet earnings
EASYJET has raised its profit forecast for the year after seeing a rise in British tourists taking European holidays and a drop in fuel costs.
Revenues in the quarter to the end of June rose 10.5 per cent to £1.03bn, and EasyJet now predicts full year pre-tax profit will rise to between £280m and £300m, compared to analyst forecasts of £272m.
The firm has also gone against the grain of the industry by boasting that its fuel costs have fallen. It reported “strong demand on beach routes from the extended period of inclement weather in northern Europe”.
Passenger numbers rose 10.9 per cent to 16m in the quarter, while its load factor rose 2.8 percentage points to 89.1 per cent.
“EasyJet has seen a fall in demand for flights touching London during the Olympic period, both from inbound business travelers and outbound leisure travelers, but forward bookings show a recovery once the games have concluded,” said chief executive Carolyn McCall. Shares in the firm closed up 2.2 per cent at 542.5p.