Tui shares drop 10% as bookings slow

Tui shares fell more than 10% Tuesday after the German travel operator reported slower growth in bookings for its summer season, raising concerns about demand across the European travel industry. The company said bookings in its airlines division for this summer were 2% higher in the last three months of 2024 than a year earlier, with 32% of its capacity sold, down from 7% growth the previous quarter. “Bookings have been slower . . . We have been less aggressive with the capacity and pricing,” said CE Sebastian Ebel. Tui’s shares were trading at €7.63 by early afternoon in Frankfurt, down from €8.52 at Monday’s close. Other European airline shares also fell, with declines of almost 7% for Wizz Air, 5% for Lufthansa and 4% for easyJet, triggered by rising oil prices pushing up fuel costs for airlines. Tui said underlying earnings before tax and interest in its airlines division had fallen 31% from the same quarter a year earlier, although this had been expected because of “higher investments ahead of the key summer season”. “We were a little bit late and there we are, in catch-up mode,” Ebel said, adding that demand had improved since January. He said Tui had been careful not to increase capacity because its priority was to “fill our capacity” to maximise profit. Ebel also said the company was focused on expanding its dynamic packaging deals business with partners such as Ryanair, allowing consumers to choose from a range of flights when booking trips. He added that such products were “risk-free and have good margins”, and outlined plans to expand the business into Nordic countries.<br/>