Wizz Air reports big loss, Airtel agrees sale of Tanzania towers

London open

The FTSE 100 is expected to open two points lower on Wednesday, having closed up 0.82% on Tuesday at 7,080.46.

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Budget carrier Wizz Air warned it would post a loss in 2022 unless Covid travel restrictions were lifted permanently as it reported a €576m net loss for the year on the back of plunging revenue and passenger numbers. The loss compared with a profit of €281m a year ago, the carrier said on Wednesday. Revenue fell 73.2% to €739m as passenger numbers slumped 74.6% to 10m. Hungary-based Wizz said it expected to fly around 30% of our capacity in the first quarter of the current year and was resuming all cash contributing flying subject to government imposed restrictions.

Airtel Africa said on Wednesday that it has agreed the sale of its Tanzania tower portfolio to a joint venture owned by a subsidiary of SBA Communications Corp and Paradigm Infrastructure for around $175m. Around $60m from the proceeds will be used to invest in network and sales infrastructure in Tanzania and for distribution to the Government of Tanzania. The balance of the proceeds will be used to reduce debt at group level, Airtel said.

Newspaper round-up

The nations that make up the G7 have pumped billions of dollars more into fossil fuels than they have into clean energy since the Covid-19 pandemic, despite their promises of a green recovery. As the UK prepares to host the G7 summit, new analysis reveals that the countries attending committed $189bn to support oil, coal and gas between January 2020 and March 2021. In comparison, the same countries – the UK, US, Canada, Italy, France, Germany and Japan – spent $147bn on clean forms of energy. - Guardian

A ransomware attack against the world’s largest meatpacking company that has disrupted meat production in North America and Australia originated from a criminal organization probably based in Russia, the White House was informed on Tuesday. The attack on Brazil’s JBS caused its Australian operations to shut down on Monday and has stopped livestock slaughter at its plants in several US states. - Guardian

The Brexit-backing boss of JD Wetherspoon has urged Boris Johnson to introduce a visa scheme for EU workers as British pubs and restaurants struggle to recruit staff in the post-pandemic labour market squeeze. Tim Martin, an ardent Brexiteer, said the Government should introduce a visa system to alleviate some of the pressures on companies, suggesting that countries geographically closer to the UK could be given preferential treatment. - Telegraph

The number of coal-fired power stations granted approval globally has risen for the first time since 2015 – with China making up two thirds of all plans for the heavily polluting plants. Despite international pledges to drastically cut carbon emissions, 20GW of coal-fired power plants were approved for investment last year, up from around 18GW in 2019. China alone approved 13GW of coal-fired plants, a 45pc increase on 2019 levels. -Telegraph

The number of coal-fired power stations granted approval globally has risen for the first time since 2015 – with China making up two thirds of all plans for the heavily polluting plants. Despite international pledges to drastically cut carbon emissions, 20GW of coal-fired power plants were approved for investment last year, up from around 18GW in 2019. China alone approved 13GW of coal-fired plants, a 45pc increase on 2019 levels. - The Times

US close

Wall Street stocks finished as they started on Tuesday, in a mixed state, as markets returned from an extended break for the Memorial Day long weekend.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.13% at 34,575.31, while the S&P 500 slipped 0.05% to 4,202.04 and the Nasdaq Composite was off 0.09% at 13,736.48.

The Dow closed 45.86 points higher on Tuesday, paring back some of its earlier gains but still extending from those recorded on Friday, amid a further drop in the number of new Covid-19 cases reported across the country.

Those moves also came after the Centers for Disease Control said more than half the US population had received at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccination, with more than 62% of adults receiving at least one dose.

Optimism was further boosted by news that the US recorded just 12,663 new cases on Saturday, the lowest figure seen since March 2020.