Lufthansa confidence eroded by terror attacks

Lufthansa has given a gloomy outlook for the key summer season and said it would focus on reducing costs after attacks in Europe deterred passengers from booking trips, creating price pressure for the German airline and its European rivals.

The carrier two weeks ago lowered its profit target for the year and trimmed growth plans after bookings on long-haul routes to Europe fell following a series of attacks in Europe and political troubles stemming from Britain’s vote to leave the EU and the failed coup in Turkey.

“We don’t have any visibility on how people are booking, and we’re losing group bookings from Asia and the US due to travel warnings,” chief financial officer Simone Menne said, although she noted business travel was holding up.