Ryanair cuts air fares to Spain after attacks

Ryanair has cut ticket prices for its flights to Spain to avoid any impact on demand from last week's attacks in Catalonia, CE Michael O'Leary said Thursday. He said the airline, the largest carrier to Spain in terms of passengers, had "generally" not seen any impact on bookings to the country since Islamist militants killed 15 people last week in Barcelona and the seaside resort of Cambrils in Catalonia, northeastern Spain. But Ryanair has reduced air fares to Spain by up to 7%, in a similar precautionary step to the one it took after attacks in London, Paris and Brussels, O'Leary said. "We lowered the fares to keep people moving," he told a news conference marking the opening of a new technical centre in Spain, which will create 250 jobs. Spain's Economy Minister Luis de Guindos said Thursday he did not expect the attacks to have any significant short-term impact on tourism, which accounts for about 11% of Spain's economy. O'Leary said Ryanair continued to be confident of growing in Spain despite heavy competition in some regions.<br/>