Thomas Cook sees 'volatile market environment'
Updated : 07:56
Holiday operator Thomas Cook said it was operating in a "volatile market environment" as it reported its summer programme was 40% sold for the group as a whole, 2% lower than the same time last year.
In a trading statement, the company said overall pricing was firm across the group, in line with last year. Bookings were down 5%, while charter risk capacity had been reduced by 3% as the uncertain geopolitical environment caused some customers to postpone booking their holidays, leading to a later booking pattern.
It said the winter session was finishing as expected, with 90% of its programme sold, 2% lower than 2015.
"We are also seeing a marked shift in demand, with significantly lower bookings than last year to Turkey, and higher bookings to Spain, other European and major long haul destinations (including the USA and Cuba)," Thomas Cook said.
"As previously reported, we took early action to rebalance capacity in anticipation of this trend. As a result, we have been able to accommodate the increased demand for Western Mediterranean and long haul destinations at higher average selling prices and margins, while mitigating the impact of reduced demand for Turkey."
"Our focus continues to be on driving margins over volume, which is leading to strong pricing trends in some markets. In Northern Europe, bookings have improved and average selling prices are up by 7%. The UK is also continuing to improve its performance, with average selling prices up by 4% for package holidays and 1% for seat-only, while total bookings are below last year's levels due to the later booking pattern."
Chief executive Peter Fankhauser said early action taken to move flights away from Turkey, Tunisia and Egypt had positioned the company well for increased customer demand to resorts in the Western Mediterranean.
"Thomas Cook continues to operate in a volatile market environment. We know that customers want a summer holiday but we can see that some are leaving it later to book this year as they consider their options," he said.