(Bloomberg) -- Ryanair Holdings Plc boosted its liquidity with a 600 million-pound ($726 million) loan backed by the U.K. government and said the coronavirus crisis will reduce passenger numbers by half over the next year.Europe’s biggest low-cost carrier is tapping Britain’s Covid Corporate Financing Facility as it digs in for a slow recovery that’s set to see a price war across a much diminished air-travel market, it said in a statement Monday. Group operations are under review and its Austrian arm could close.While Chief Executive Officer Michael O’Leary aims to resume flying in July in a bid to rescue at least some revenue this summer, Ryanair said it expects to carry fewer than 80 million passengers in the 12 months through March 2021, compared with an original target of 154 million. Bookings are edging up, but not enough to stem losses in what’s usually the peak season.“We’re seeing a little bit of a pickup,” Chief Financial Officer Neil Sorahan said. “There’s definitely people starting to look at kind of August September out to get some sun before the kids go back to school.” The company said it will book a loss of more than 200 million euros ($216 million) for the June quarter and a smaller hit in the three months through September.Ryanair shares were trading 4.6% higher at 8.84 euros as of 8:10 a.m. in Dublin, where the group is based, paring the stock’s decline this year to 40%.The company, which counts London Stansted as its biggest base, tapped the U.K.’s support program after vehemently arguing against aid for its rivals, though Sorahan said the funding doesn’t compare to billions of euros destined for Deutsche Lufthansa AG and Air France-KLM.The Bank of England-administered CCFF is available to all firms with an investment grade credit rating “whether you’re a house builder, an airline or a boot manufacturer,” the CFO said. “It’s not illegal state aid.”The funding lifts Ryanair’s cash balance to 4.1 billion euros, giving it “one of the strongest cash positions in the industry,” according to Sanford C. Bernstein analyst Daniel Roeska, who said the company could probably withstand a shutdown beyond the end of the calendar year without a need for fresh equity.Job CutsO’Leary is also slashing costs by deferring capital investments, suspending share buybacks and cutting management pay, and plans to eliminate 3,000 pilot, cabin crew and office jobs, with remaining staff taking a 20% salary cut. With more than 99% of flights grounded the average weekly cash burn has dropped from 200 million euros in March to just over 60 million euros.Active negotiations are underway with Boeing Co. about reducing planned deliveries of 737 Max jets -- a model currently grounded after two crashes -- over the next 24 months to reflect slower traffic, as well as with leasing firms providing Airbus SE A320s to the Vienna-based Lauda arm.Expenses at Lauda, acquired in 2018, remain ahead of the rest of the group, and with Lufthansa’s Austrian arm set to receive about 800 million euros in support the business’s future is in doubt, according to the statement. The base will close at the end of this month with more than 300 job losses if costs cuts aren’t achieved, it said.”Lauda is a massive challenge,” Sorahan said. “There’s a restructuring going on which requires significant cost cutting. If that doesn’t happen then unfortunately the base will have to close and the A320s will have to come out.”Ryanair reported a profit of 1 billion euros for fiscal 2020, before exceptional items, within its guided range of 950 million euros to 1.05 billion euros. The net figure was dragged down by 353 million-euro charge against losses from jet-fuel hedges.(Updates with shares in fifth paragraph, analyst comment in eighth, fleet negotiations in 10th)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.

May.18 -- Ryanair Holdings Plc Chief Executive Officer Michael O’Leary says that support by German and French governments for their airline industries is "illegal" and will "distort the market." He made the comments after Europe's biggest low-cost carrier boosted its liquidity with a 600 million-pound ($726 million) loan backed by the U.K. government. He speaks on "Bloomberg Markets: European Open."

U.K. stocks joined a global rally on Monday, as the chairman of the Federal Reserve said the U.S. central bank still had tools to fight the economic crisis and as data showed new virus cases growing at the slowest rate in months.

Ryanair warned it would make a €200m loss in its first quarter as the low-cost carrier expected the number of passengers flying this year would be about half of its original target due to coronavirus. The Dublin-based airline said on Monday that it expected to carry 80m passengers during its current fiscal year, which started in April, down from its original goal of 154m passengers. The shares, which have fallen by 36 per cent in the year to date, were trading around €9.28 shortly after midday in Dublin.

Ryanair shares soared on Monday as the cut-rate airline slashed its burn rate and came in ahead of forecasts. What the controversial Irish airline can do may provide some inspiration for a battered industry.

Ryanair expects Britain to join other European nations in dropping COVID-19 quarantine plans in the coming weeks, its CEO told Reuters on Wednesday, as he reported a "big surge" in holiday bookings from the country. Last week, Britain announced a 14-day quarantine from June 8 for all air passenger arrivals, including its own citizens, even as countries such as Italy and Spain move to ease equivalent restrictions. Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary said many Britons had not been deterred by the move, with booking rates in recent days indicating the 1,000 daily flights it plans to fly in July - 40% of normal capacity - were likely to be 50% to 60% full.

Ryanair (RYAAY) faces dwindling air-travel demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Nevertheless, its liquidity position is impressive.

But the airline says it will weather the coronavirus crisis and emerge stronger afterwards.

Rolls-Royce was the worst performing of the U.K. blue chips on Thursday, as a hedge fund sold its stake in the engine maker.

Any air traveller knows the drill. But pre-flight safety demonstrations now come with an added accessory. Face masks. And as flying resumes, budget airlines say such coverings will be mandatory for passengers too. Ryanair executive Eddie Wilson: "You know, you will have to have a mask, I think, to get into an airport now. And we will be insisting on it onboard. It's there in your boarding card. If you don't have one, you won't be able to travel.” Planes will also face extra cleaning. There will be no food service, and on board movement will be limited. With southern Europe slowly opening up again, it’s hoped such measures will revive holiday travel. But that could be complicated by some countries’ plans to quarantine arrivals for 14 days. In the UK that will start on June 1, with just Ireland and France exempt. It’s something Ryanair has been campaigning against. "They're pointless because you can't police them. So what do you do when somebody arrives back from, or arrives into the UK, and gets on the Gatwick Express or the Heathrow Express? What, do you quarantine all the people on the track and trains - everybody who's on those forms of mass transportation? Like, it's unimplementable.” Ryanair and easyJet will resume some flights in June and July. Shares in both saw strong gains Thursday (May 21). EasyJet was up around five percent by early afternoon; Ryanair more than 6%. Future success will depend on convincing people it’s safe to fly again.

European stocks jumped at the open, as data showed new coronavirus cases growing at the slowest rate in months while the head of the Federal Reserve said the U.S. central bank had plenty of ammunition to fight the economic crisis.

The likes of Delta (DAL) and United Airlines (UAL) are looking at ways to promote cleanliness in a bid to encourage passengers to resume flying.

Boris Johnson’s government said Friday it would impose a 14-day quarantine on all travelers entering the U.K. beginning June 8, with a system of spot checks and £1,000 fines for people who fail to self-isolate.

Renew has not escaped the economic fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic, but its focus on essential infrastructure maintenance activities means 80 per cent of its work has continued. Revenue from the largest division rose by 4 per cent to £293m, benefiting from emergency work in response to rail landslips and storms Ciara and Dennis. Adjusted operating profit increased by 7 per cent to £20.5m, with January’s acquisition of road engineering specialist Carnell bolstering the margin by 0.2 percentage points to 7 per cent. The purchase marks Renew’s entry into the highways market, which it has been eyeing for some time.

The likes of Ryanair (RYAAY) and Azul (AZUL) incur coronavirus-induced losses in Q1.

Guru releases 1st-quarter portfolio Continue reading...

Low-cost carrier Ryanair challenged Germany's 9 billion euro rescue package for Lufthansa on Tuesday, saying it distorted competition, while the German carrier moves towards finalising the deal next month. The government-backed aid will allow Lufthansa to "engage in below-cost selling" and make it harder for Ryanair, its Laudamotion subsidiary and rival low-cost carrier easyJet to compete, Ryanair Chief Executive Michael O'Leary said in a statement on Tuesday. "Ryanair will appeal against this latest example of illegal state aid to Lufthansa, which will massively distort competition," O'Leary said in the statement.

As thousands of flights are cancelled, global airlines are seeking ways to survive. Ryanair investors on Monday (May 18) gave their backing to the airline's handling of the crisis. Shares surged over 13% on strong cost control and over a $1 billion profit in the past financial year. It came as Ryanair cut its annual passenger target by another 20%. Europe's largest low cost carrier also said it had no idea how much it would earn this year. As part of a cost-cutting drive that will shed at least 3,250 jobs, Ryanair is also looking at pulling out of some airports across Europe. CEO Michael O'Leary said he expects to fly fewer than 80 million passengers in the coming year, down from an original target of 154 million: " We're focused now on getting the business back and getting Europe flying again, we believe that will be possible, subject to the governments lifting restrictions by about the first of July, we expect to operate about 40 percent of our normal July schedule during that month. We still need the waiving of some of the government movement restrictions and we're also pushing back against the some of the more absurd, ineffective and unpoliceable restrictions, such as 14-day isolation periods.'' One aviation casualty of the crisis appeared to have some good news Monday. Virgin Australia's administrators have reportedly short-listed potential buyers. They're expected to receive as many as eight non-binding offers from potential buyers before a deadline Friday (May 22). The company entered voluntary administration last month owing creditors nearly $4.5 billion. Budget airline Norwegian Air, which was on the brink of collapse, also looks likely to live on in a very slimmed-down form. It's completed a cut-price share sale and won bondholders' backing for a refinancing. Existing shareholders will see their stakes massively diluted by the rescue. The airline's shares initially plunged 51% on Monday before recovering to trade down 22% on the day.

Ryanair's (RYAAY) revenues see year-over-year decline in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2020 due to the coronavirus-led drop in air travel demand.