LOW cost airline easyJet has revealed another £35 million hit as it takes a hammering from the weak pound, while it also outlined the impact of last month's Christmas market attack in Berlin.
The budget carrier said the weak pound was now expected to cost it around £105m over its 2016/17 financial year, up from the £90m estimated in November, with fuel expenses also falling by less than expected.
The group added on top of the extra £35 million fuel and pound bill, it also saw a financial impact in the "low millions" from the deadly truck attack in Berlin, which killed 12 people on December 19, as bookings to the city dropped in the immediate aftermath.
It is also forking out £10 million for an air operation certificate as it sets up a new operating company in mainland Europe and applies for a new licence to secure flying rights of 30 per cent of its routes after Brexit.
Shares tumbled by nine per cent after the update.
The airline said revenues per seat fell 8.2 per cent as it continued to slash prices in the face of competition from the likes of rival Ryanair, but the group said this marked an improvement.
It is cutting costs across the group to weather the difficult trading from the weak pound and increased competition as part of a group-wide review.
Carolyn McCall, easyJet chief executive, said the airline delivered a "solid" first quarter to December 31 in the face of "tough" conditions.
"The weakness of sterling and the impact of fuel combined are £35m worse than previously expected, but easyJet has made good progress in reducing costs in those areas where we have more control such as engineering, maintenance, non-regulated airports and overheads," she added.
ends
It said it carried 8.2 per cent more passengers in the Christmas quarter, at 17.4 million, but its load factor - a key industry measure of how well airlines fill their planes - fell to 90 per cent from 90.3 per cent a year earlier.
The group added that around 56 per cent of expected bookings for the second quarter have now been secured, which is "slightly ahead" year on year.
But easyJet confirmed it is expecting revenue per seat for the first half to decline by "high single digits", knocked by the timing of Easter and the impact of the Berlin attack.
Ken Odeluga, market analyst at City Index, said shares in the group plunged as "widening exchange rate pain is once again taking a toll on sentiment".
"After a bruising 2016, easyJet investors have understandably latched on to the continuing drag on profitability from Brexit-hit sterling," he said.
EasyJet revealed its first fall in annual profits for six years in November after being buffeted by the plunging pound, terrorism fears and air strikes.
The group posted a 27.9 per cent tumble in pre-tax profits to £495m for the year to September 30, after the sharply weaker pound cost it £88m and it suffered a blow of around £150m from ''unprecedented'' events.
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