TUI Travel – shaky debut on the stock market

Britain’s No 1 tour operator TUI Travel made a shaky debut on the stock market yesterday. The group was formed from the merger of First Choice and Germany’s TUI, owner of the old Thomson Holidays.

The shares opened at 302p each which was up on the 295.75p at which First Choice shares closed last Friday. However, the price quickly fell and closed at 268.5p. The group is valued at £3.19 billion, still enough for TUI to qualify for the FTSE-100 index.

TUI Travel, which employs nearly 50,000 people globally, commented that the group has some fantastic opportunities ahead. By bringing together well-known brands in leisure travel, together with TUI’s management expertise, the group will be shaping the future of the tourism industry. TUI concluded that their shareholders are set to benefit from the merger.

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