LONDON: Tour operator Thomas Cook will restart holidays in Tunisia now that Britain has softened its travel advice to the country, the firm’s boss said on Thursday.
Shares rose after the company reiterated its full-year outlook, and said that demand for summer bookings was strong.
The decision to move back into Tunisia provides an opportunity for the firm to build on a rebound in appetite for holidays in the Middle East and North Africa, after years of subdued performance.
It should also be a welcome boost to Tunisia, where tourism accounts for 8 percent of gross domestic product and is a key source of foreign currency and jobs.
Britain said on Wednesday that it was no longer advising against travel to most of Tunisia after tightening its advice following a militant attack in a Tunisian resort in June 2015. There had also been an earlier attack at the Bardo museum in Tunis.
The attacks led to two years of sharp declines in tourism.
Thomas Cook Chief Executive Peter Fankhauser said that the British decision was unexpected and a positive for Tunisia and the tourism industry.
“The foreign office came to the conclusion that it is again safe to travel. We didn’t have any program for the winter so we are setting up a really good quality offer for Tunisia and this is going to take some time,” he told reporters.
“I suppose that we are going to start during the winter season, but more toward the spring.”
Tour operators such as Thomas Cook have seen business in the Middle East and North Africa suffer in recent years as security issues deterred visitors, with travel firms laying on more holidays to the western Mediterranean to compensate.
However, this year has seen a bounceback in markets such as Turkey and Egypt, while markets such as Spain have been more thorny.
Fankhauser said that a resurgence in Turkey had not been affected by increased tensions with Germany, and said that Turkey remained attractive despite a warning by the German government for its citizens to be careful when traveling there.
On the flipside, the increase in capacity in Spain is hitting margins there, and Thomas Cook said that prices were under pressure from the intense competition.
The tour operator said it had seen strong demand for summer bookings, and that winter sales so far were also encouraging. It added that its full-year operating profit would be in-line with forecasts.
Profit is expected to grow 6 percent to £326 million ($426 million) for the financial year ended Sept. 30 2017.
The travel firm said that group revenue was up 14 percent, and that winter 2017/2018 was 30 percent sold, with bookings ahead in all markets. Shares were up 3.7 percent.
Barclays said that the results were a slightly ahead of expectations, and that the reiterated guidance for the year was reassurance, even as the margin pressure in Spain continued to be a negative.
Tour operator Thomas Cook back to Tunisia after UK travel advice shifts
Tour operator Thomas Cook back to Tunisia after UK travel advice shifts
Restaurants helps POS spending stay above $3bn: SAMA
RIYADH: Spending in restaurants and cafes helped Saudi Arabia’s weekly point-of-sale transactions stay above the $3 billion mark during the week ending Dec. 13, coming in at SR13.31 billion ($3.54 billion).
According to the latest data from the Saudi Central Bank, expenditure in the sector reached SR1.73 billion, marking a 3.7 percent week-on-week increase, with the number of transactions surging by 3.2 percent to 58.49 million.
Despite this surge, the overall POS value dropped 7.9 percent, with transactions representing a 0.03 percent weekly decrease to 236.12 million.
The seven-day period saw broad declines across several sectors. Spending on freight transport, postal, and courier services recorded the sharpest drop, falling 43.3 percent to SR34.57 million. Education followed with a 42.9 percent decrease to SR124.91 million, while expenditure on laundry services declined by 15.6 percent to SR51.58 million.
Expenditure on apparel and clothing fell by 8.7 percent, and spending on telecommunications dropped by 15.5 percent. In contrast, jewelry was the only category to register growth, edging up 1.2 percent to SR329.70 million.
Spending on car rentals declined by 7.2 percent, and airline expenditure fell by 4.1 percent to SR44.39 million.
Expenditure on food and beverages saw a 14.3 percent decrease to SR2.01 billion, claiming the largest share of the POS, followed by restaurants and cafes, which retained the second position.
The Kingdom’s key urban centers mirrored the national decline. Riyadh, which accounted for the largest share of total POS spending, saw a 5.2 percent dip to SR4.63 billion, down from SR4.89 billion the previous week.
The number of transactions in the capital settled at 74.57 million, up 0.5 percent week-on-week.
In Jeddah, transaction values decreased by 7.1 percent to SR1.77 billion, while Dammam reported an 8.7 percent dip to SR651.55 million.
POS data, tracked weekly by SAMA, provides an indicator of consumer spending trends and the ongoing growth of digital payments in Saudi Arabia.
The data also highlights the expanding reach of POS infrastructure, extending beyond major retail hubs to smaller cities and service sectors, supporting broader digital inclusion initiatives.
The growth of digital payment technologies aligns with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 objectives, promoting electronic transactions and contributing to the nation’s broader digital economy.
