Analysts at Barclays have suggested that Thomas Cook Group should spin off the airline unit from its core tour operator business in order to reduce the group's debt, The Daily Mail has reported.
Thomas Cook itself declined to comment on the report, although reports earlier this year suggested that the group might be contemplating selling the airline unit.
Barclays said that the group's debts are about two-thirds of its valuation, which currently stands at GBP558 million pounds (USD715 million). The bank pointed out that the tour operator is under pressure from independent rivals allowing for self-organised trips, as well as from the climate changes which lead to warmer summers in Europe and thus discourage customers from travelling abroad for holidays.
The group currently owns Thomas Cook Airlines UK (Manchester International), Condor (DE, Frankfurt International), Air Berlin Aviation (Frankfurt International), Thomas Cook Airlines Scandinavia (Copenhagen Kastrup), and Thomas Cook Airlines Balearics (Palma de Mallorca).
