Mali attack weighing on airline stocks - traders

Shares in easyJet and Ryanair fell one to three per cent on Friday, underperforming the European travel and leisure index, with traders citing the attack on a luxury hotel in Mali and broker downgrades as reasons for the weakness.

Shares of British Airways owner IAG were also down 1.4 per cent.

“Mali attacks [have led to] follow-on concerns,” said Atif Latif, director at Guardian Stockbrokers.

Gunmen attacked the hotel full of foreigners in Mali’s capital Bamako, taking 170 people hostage. A Turkish government official said six Turkish Airlines staff members were are among the people in the hotel.

Kepler Cheuvreux cut its rating on easyJet to “reduce” from “hold”, while Barclays cut its target price for the stock.