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TUI sees earnings at top end of range despite Tunisia cancellations

The company, which owns First Choice and Airtours, said the attacks had cost it €10m in repatriation costs and cancelled bookings in June, although the total bill rose to around €35-40m once the cost of empty hotel rooms in Tunisia was counted.

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Anglo-German travel giant Tui Group grew revenues and underlying operating profits impressively in the third quarter, also tightening its full year profit growth guidance to 12.5-15%.

However, the period was overshadowed by a terrorist attack in Tunisia at the end of June. “[However] we have seen a recovery in booking volumes to Greece in recent weeks”, it said.

It said Tunisia accounts for 3% of its annual programme and that most of the customers booked to Tunisia have now booked to other TUI destinations.

Travel giant TUI has today laid bare the impact of June’s deadly beach attack in Tunisia, which claimed 38 lives.

“Supporting our customers, their families and our colleagues through this sad time remains our highest priority”, said Tui chief executive Peter Long. Of these 33 were on Tui holidays. “I am immensely proud of the commitment and dedication that we as an organisation have collectively shown”.

The company did not give an update on the future impact of the Tunisian atrocity – in a country which has in the past represented three per cent of its annual tour operator programmes. “Within our business model there is an inherent assumption that we will face a level of disruption as a result of external events”.

“We are able to accelerate our group’s growth through the successful integration and consistent implementation of our strategy”.

Despite the tragedy, TUI delivered an 18% rise in underlying earnings for the quarter to 194 million euros (£138 million). Hotelbeds Group has also delivered growth in earnings.

Mr Long said summer trading remained “robust” while bookings for the winter were in line with expectations and there had been a good start for the summer 2016 period.

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The figures come after rival Thomas Cook revealed a £25m hit to earnings from events in Tunisia and Greece.

Tui took a €10m hit due to the beach massacre at a holiday resort in Tunisia