EasyJet Shares Surge as Carrier Lifts Estimate for First Half Performance

EasyJet said Monday its first half loss will be much lower than forecast thanks to tighter cost controls and a renewed marketing effort.

Shares in Europe's second-largest discount carrier surged more than 5% at the start of trading in London after the report, rising past 483p per share.

The Luton-England based group said it expects a pre-tax loss of between £110m and £120 for the six months ending in March and made no changes to its estimates for financial performance in the second half of the year.

"In a difficult environment for all airlines, improvements in revenue management combined with marketing and website initiatives have enabled EasyJet to take advantage as weaker competitors have left the market over the last couple of months," the company said in a statement.

The company also said around 30% of its seats are booked for the second half of its financial year.