By Dhirendra Tripathi
Investing.com – Shares of major European airlines traded higher Thursday on reports the U.K. will scrap mandatory pre-departure Covid-19 tests for entry into the region.
Ryanair ADRs (NASDAQ:RYAAY) rose 4.2% on Nasdaq in premarket session, while EasyJet (LON:EZJ), British Airways-owner IAG (LON:ICAG) and Wizz Air (LON:WIZZ) all traded around 3% higher in London.
A report in The Telegraph said current ‘traffic light’ system of restrictions will be simplified to aid the tourist industry, ahead of the autumn half-term break at the end of October.
According to the report, this should see the green and amber lists of countries merge into a single category. This will enable double-jabbed Britons’ quarantine-free travel to other countries. The red category, for countries the government advises against visiting, may remain.
The new system will also help in individually determining the risk profile of a traveler compared to the previous scenario that was country-specific.
The easing of restrictions should provide a much-needed boost to a travel industry whose key summer tourism season was depressed by onerous testing requirements that put many people off travelling. The U.K. is among the most vaccinated countries in the world and was recovering well from the pandemic until the delta variant struck in June-July.