27 November, 2008: Europe´s biggest travel firm TUI Travel saw full year pre-tax profits rise by 43 per cent.
The group, created last year from the tie-up between TUI AG´s travel division and First Choice, made a pre-tax profit for the year to Sept 30 of £319.7 million, compared with a proforma figure of £222.8 million the year before.
The increase came as the Thomson parent group benefited from a strong performance in the UK and merger synergies.
The group is seeing "encouraging" early sales for summer 2009 with UK charter averge selling prices upby 10%.
Synergy savings are now expected to rise by £25 million to £175 million.
Chief executive Peter Long said: "Our customers continue to regard their main holiday as an essential, not a luxury, which they are reluctant to forgo. More than ever they want to book their holidays with trustworthy brands that provide excellent value for money."
He added: "I believe that the actions we are taking to manage supply and accelerate the synergy benefits puts us in strong position to manage the current economic environment and continue to meet our expectations for 2009."
