LONDON (AFX) - Troubled British tour operator MyTravel Group PLC said it is
set to achieve profit margins in line with current UK travel industry standards
by 2007.
Announcing arrangements for the issuance of new shares under a radical
restructuring backed by shareholders and bondholders earlier this month,
MyTravel said there is now a "good prospect" of it implementing a business plan
which aims to bring its margins into line with industry benchmarks within two
years.
The company added that it expects its European and North American operations
to continue performing well in the year to October 2005, while UK revenues look
set to fall because of planned capacity reductions.
However, UK margins are expected to improve as changes to MyTravel's
business strategy begin to yield results, the company said.
MyTravel also reiterated that it does not expect Sunday's Indian Ocean
earthquake, which devastated coastal regions in several south-east Asian
countries, to have a "material effect" on the implementation of its business
plan.
"The Indian Ocean earthquake will have some negative impact on the results
of the Northern Europe division, but the company will take steps to minimise
this," MyTravel said.
MyTravel, formerly known as Airtours, came close to collapse amid a sharp
downturn in overseas travel following the Sept 11 2001 attacks. The company's
woes were compounded in 2002 by accounting errors and growing competition from
low-cost airlines.
The company won a reprieve earlier this month when shareholders and
bondholders backed a deal which will see 96 pct of its equity transferred to
creditors.
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