EasyJet traffic up 9% in August, load factor ticks higher

Budget carrier easyJet posted a rise in passenger numbers in August as the load factor ticked higher.

The airline carried 8.2m passengers last month, up 9.4% from the same month a year ago as the load factor - which gauges how full the planes are - increased to 96.3% from 94.9%.

On a rolling 12-month basis, passenger numbers were up 9.2% to 79.5m while the load factor edged up to 92.3% from 91.8%.

Back in July, easyJet said it expected to deliver a headline profit before tax for FY2017 of between £380m and £420m. This was above analysts' expectations of around £375m but under the £495m it reported in 2016.

At 0805 BST, the shares were up 0.9% to 1,167p.