cost iag $103 million.he airline launched a budget airline called level last year, offering fares from barcelona to several us cities for $137 one way. this transatlantic market, the most lucrative in the world, saw budget carriers boost capacity on these routes by 68% last summer. with me is daniel roeska, transport analyst at bernstein research. thank you forjoining us. let us start on what you can expect. generally the picture looks very rosy for iag. absolutely. what we're seeing is that the trading is exceptionally good. signal factors are up. you mentioned the mike mack consolidation. there is out of the uk have temporarily gone up for iag. —— ——monarch. uk have temporarily gone up for iag. -- --monarch. seeing airlines like barataria and -- --monarch. seeing airlines like ba rataria and monarch -- --monarch. seeing airlines like barataria and monarch disappear, it does not take long. in the third quarter we will see the market quarter we will see the market quarter being observed... it takes a while.

will go on to groups like iag.s like iag. one of its biggest strength is that it has a wide portfolio, it covers different business models, it attracts customers and brands. the premium end of the customers with airlines like british airways and iberia so it's covered in all angles and is very flexible in how it deploys that capacity, willing to move aircraft and routes as it sees changes in the marketplace. since its formation with the merger of ba and iberia, iag has been mopping up allies. today, thomas cook has been ruled out but can we expect iag to add further airlines? i think it's interesting to me that they pulled away from the region, i primarily a low—cost airline, a new business model proving popular with customers. it has a lot of challenges to address which i think is what made iag pull away from it. i think they will selectively look at other airlines let fit in with theirfamily, so at other airlines let fit in with their family, so to speak. all the other airlines that have come and have been profit

the first takeaway is that iag has performed well in absolute terms and relative to some of its peers routes that you have mentioned and it benefits disproportionately from that activity, as well. in the post—pandemic world you have seen a degree of abundance in travel simply because we had cash and the inclination having been restricted somewhat, but it is only reasonable to expect higher interest rates to curb the consumer demands in a way and the delay in those interest rates taking effect means that is to's but not for iag. they have performed pretty well relative to a lot their peers. travel demand remains high but seeing high levels of air traffic flow restrictions recently. yes, i think a lot of what iag has been able to do is try to navigate away from some of the industry problems. they have a range of different fleet. ryanair had some problems on that issue. they have flexibility in terms of the network, so that has been a meaningful advantage. they have also had a degree of capital discipline, so debt has fallen as a result of that they find themselves in quite a strong posi

iag as the demand for. . ._ banks moved was cutting rates. iag as the demand for..._ as the demand for... apple has been forced to apologise after _ as the demand for... apple has been forced to apologise after its - as the demand for. .. apple has been forced to apologise after its new- forced to apologise after its new ipad commercial sparked an outcry around the world. the ad showing books, musical instruments and art materials being crushed by a giant hydraulic press was supposed to issue how creativity has been compressed into the latest ipad. but is it has been seized upon by critics, who says it sums up the cycling of duty by big tech, and even the threat from artists by artificial intelligence. so how did you get it so wrong? mark, for all the outcry we have seen online, as it speak to a sense of tone deafness by apple here? i it speak to a sense of tone deafness by apple here?— by apple here? i think it is corporate _ by apple here? i think it is corporate hubris. - by apple here? i think it is corporate hubris. for- by apple here? i think it is corporate hu

and that leaves iag in a difficult position compared to european competitors.dressed this? there must be a lot happening behind the scenes because very little is happening in front of the scenes. again there is a level of reassurance that everything from shareownership within iag and the kind of connecting traffic that british airways in the uk operating licence brings to the is very significant. it is not something you canjust significant. it is not something you can just sweep under the carpet because you are talking about a0 yea rs of progress because you are talking about a0 years of progress that the presence of companies like iag across europe symbolises. how about norwegian? two bids have been rejected from iag. why is it so eager to purchase norwegian? it is an interesting play and one could represented as everything from an exploitation of the market that they are not in to ta ke the market that they are not in to take out strategy. if you look at the roots that norwegians fly from gatwick, what some fly head—to—head one way 01’ gatwick, what some fly

when compare iag to us. when you compare iag to other european airlines, it has m- this?this? yes, it's done very well. doing this? yes, it's done very well- the _ doing this? yes, it's done very well. the margins _ doing this? yes, it's done very well. the margins that - doing this? yes, it's done very well. the margins that they i doing this? yes, it's done very| well. the margins that they are are some of the best achieving are some of the best the world achieving are some of the heat the world for an airline. e haw are'they'd'aing'it? ithink very bae in particular, on the transatlantic. that market is much in demand and it is fairly 25” city_ 7 e c—fiaity, m” tight capacity, so when you look at their numbers, their revenues were very strong in the transatlantic, that is where the beat estimates. when we talk about _ where the beat estimates. when we talk about these _ where the beat estimates. when we talk about these very - we talk about these very transatlantic routes, at leisure or is it is at leisure or is it business, do know? is at leisure or is it business, do

around how iag as a group would have performed in that half year?e good. in the context of the whole industry and they are not the only ones in this situation. ryanair last week, they had a 50% pay cut. lufthansa... we are in downward circle at the moment. we have had a really good run in terms of performance from many airlines and now what we are seeing is everything conspiring against them. a lot of cost in dollars for iag and ba which has revenue in stirling and that has devalued. anecdotally, you know, in terms of friends family colleagues, i get the sense that people are flying more, especially shorthaul, than they used to ten years ago. and yet the airlines are still facing these pressures, presumably because these pressures, presumably because the margins become so tight and the cost becomes increasingly burdensome. capacity this summer from the uk has been up by i.5%. so more and more people are travelling but the reality is we have too much capacity in the market and that means people are getting really good fa res means people are getting

so how damaging will this be, do you think for iag?ost of the strike today and there's more strike action scheduled for two was the end of the month if there is no agreement this week. and ba has a legal duty, doesn't it? to find alternative routes for passengers which might be with competitors. exactly. the only winners are the competitors. customers suffer, they're going to be angry, somewhat threaten and indeed not fly with british airways again. the direct cost of lost reve nu es over again. the direct cost of lost revenues over £40 million a day. that gives the urgency to solve this. when we move into the medium term, this resolution, i would expect this to come back, there have been a series of pallets rugs which went on three and a half years until 2017. that is something we would have to have — my crib is in the mind of the union and get this thing resolved quickly so the company can get back on track for its customers and maintain its strong performance which is to the good of this workforce as well as travellers. john, thank

what is it about norwegian that fits so well with iag? why is it so important?m isa with iag?ery large, pan—european, low—cost airline with a solid network. you know, it's got a presence at gatwick. that could be quite nicely consolidated with a british airways operation. that would work well. what we have seen over the last two matter years is british airways following norwegian into long—haul markets. they've gone to fort lauderdale, they've gone to california, following norwegian. it would make a lot of sense for that to be scared back to just one airline operating, because you tend to make more money when that happens. talking about budget airlines, we had one of the darker clouds within the set of numbers? 0riginally clouds within the set of numbers? originally a spanish —based airline, they have to micro herbs in paris, one at charles de gaulle, and they have one in rome. bosch they have two herbs. they fly over french airspace and get it more than anybody else. the other irony in this is that air france are one of the poorest performers in europe at the poorest performe

what is it that iag is doing so right right now?lements, overall regulatory framework which is common, economic geography coverage of the region they are in and a flexibility of business model and what iag is doing very well at at the moment is that ability of business model across the whole spectrum of markets. do you mean from cheap right up to the luxury end of the market? leisure to business end of the market and also reflecting the demand in north—west europe and south—west europe as well. there are some gaps in that, they have some gaps they could fill in terms of the market? looking at central europe and eastern europe, the coverage connecting through london and madrid is quite weak. so i think that is something that was indicated about their interests, for insta nce indicated about their interests, for instance in nicky, to fill the gaps. when we talk about iag we often think about british airways because it is the big lump within this body of companies but obviously, their main hub remains heathrow, discussion about a third

where is the chief executive of iag 7 disgrace. where is the chief executive of iag?at about the chief executive of ba? yes, the big honcho is the head of iag. the silence has been deafening. yesterday in madrid, shares fell by 396 yesterday in madrid, shares fell by 3% which i thought was very generous. i think they will fall 10% soon. we have seen generous. i think they will fall 10% $00". we have seen a generous. i think they will fall 10% soon. we have seen a very different view on this, we saw that this was a two—week wonder. everyone will be very angry, shares will go down, and then ina very angry, shares will go down, and then in a few weeks, when you're booking your next flight, you will look out british airways and think, 0k, fine. it depends what else is out there. you've got to think of the business flow over a year. i think they could be damaged for a period of six weeks. what would you be advising them to do? people were having to pay hundreds of pounds to get on a different flight. they didn't get compensation. they will get compensation. but they have h

, they are very profitable as pa rt context, they are very profitable as part of their parent group iagsfy customer needs to attract business in a competitive market they wouldn't be that strong. they have had to take on challenges because we as customers are looking more and more for good prices in our travels, also ba has to compete against low—cost carriers and equally have to compete at the top end of the market with premium customer brands like the airways and emirates. they have to invest in the premium product if it means we get lower prices at the bottom end by competitors, and we go to the competitors if ba doesn't offer them, they have to make sure they do the same thing and they have to look at their cost efficiencies they can do that without losing money. this strike starts tomorrow, 16 day strike. what is it about? as we heard, there was a strike or a series of strikes earlier in the year about pay and ba's mixed fleet, they said that a few years ago to deal with issues to make it more efficient in terms of cost levels for cabin crew and productivity and the union in fact a

at the paris airshow, the latest buzz has been about british airway‘s owner iag putting its faith inr iag putting its faith in boeing's troubled 737 max jet, despite it being grounded worldwide since two deadly crashes in the past year. 0ur correspondent theo leggettjoins us now from the paris air show. theo, talk us through exactly what ba and iag have been saying about this purchase and what the mood is about what they have done. well, it is hard to overestimate just how important this is for boeing. international airlines group has signed a letter of intent saying it wa nts to signed a letter of intent saying it wants to buy 200 737 aircraft. that is not the same as a firm order but it would be very surprising if it rowed back on that. iag is saying it has confidence that boeing can fix the 737 max and software fixes will ultimately work, make the aircraft com pletely ultimately work, make the aircraft completely safe and enable it to be sold for many years to come. for boeing, that is incredibly important, this is its flagship aircraft. it has a backlog of about 5,500 aircraft. a

iag, a good evening once again. _ still not released. iag, a good evening once again.d. iag, a good | evening once again. i associate still not released. iag, a good - evening once again. i associate my remarks _ evening once again. i associate my remarks of — evening once again. i associate my remarks of the jennyjust had to say, _ remarks of the jennyjust had to say, this— remarks of the jennyjust had to say, this is— remarks of the jennyjust had to say, this is a chess match —— i agree — say, this is a chess match —— i agree. hamas is calculating that if we let_ agree. hamas is calculating that if we let 2-3 — agree. hamas is calculating that if we let 2—3 go here and there, it will delay— we let 2—3 go here and there, it will delay the inevitable ground invasion— will delay the inevitable ground invasion of the gaza strip. in my heart _ invasion of the gaza strip. in my heart goes — invasion of the gaza strip. in my heart goes out not only to those who were murdered in this terrible attack, — were murdered in this terrible attack, but my heart also goes out for the

but arguably others like iag and job. but arguably others like iag a nd luftha nsa job. lufthansa have done better. air france and klm never integrated, there is mistrust. air france specifically has not restructured as much as it has to. and the chief executive resigned and the decision for the new leader will set the tone of how the talks carry on? that is what i would say. the chairman has the choice, a typical air france choice of bringing somebody new in every two years, or deciding for restructuring candidates, arguably to deal with the situation effectively that is fairto the situation effectively that is fair to the plough use you would need a leader to be there for almost a decade to solve this issue. —— deal with the situation effectively ina way deal with the situation effectively in a way that is fair to the employees. the likes of british airways and lufthansa have adapted to this new markets, why have air france not been able to do the same? iag, ba and lufthansa went through a series of bad strikes, at the time everybody said this is the wrong strategy, yo

what it has meant for the larger airlines, iag, etc, is that hopefully they can push prices up.t an operating level, a difficult operating environment, try to decrease costs. it is difficult when you are dealing with large airports like heathrow. that is a good point. it is the nature of these things. there is a picture of the ceo, as say, salivating over the you say, salivating over the colla pse you say, salivating over the collapse of some of these smaller airlines. it is a reality, they have said it about consolidating in the industry, this point also about needing to push. he mentioned taking on heathrow at the moment. needing to push. he mentioned taking on heathrow at the momentm needing to push. he mentioned taking on heathrow at the moment. it is really important. british airways itself ‘ the landing really important. british airways itself ‘the landing slots itself has 51% of the landing slots at airport. heathrow at heathrow airport. heathrow airport is 65% more expensive than all other major european hubs. it is an incredibly tough operating environment. every airlin

i age iage and, i age and, you know, iage and, you know, i i age and, you know, i think you can neverhey have been the captain, because you're not sure how they will act. you don't really know how they will do thejob. he you don't really know how they will do the job. he is a world—class player, the best batsmen in the team. i think he is a very thoughtful player, i think tactically he is very astute. i do think he will make a very good captain for england, and if it is next year i think he will do a tremendousjob, no next year i think he will do a tremendous job, no doubt about it. the twice wimbledon champion petra kvitova has undergone a four—hour potentially career—saving operation after a knife attack in her own home. the world number 11 says she's ‘fortunate to be alive' after grappling with a burglar at her flat in the czech republic. surgeons operated on her left hand, her racket hand, to repair tendons and nerves. she'll be out of action for at least three months and the likelihood of a full recovery is unknown. celtic have gone 14 points clear at the top of the scottish prem

that is iag, i promise you. oil prices moving up 2.73%.t the euro, the pound down against the euro below one .10. still a better way before the lowest it's been, but not looking too strong at the moment. we are here and now that president trump spoke to new prime minister borisjohnson trump spoke to new prime minister boris johnson yesterday to discuss new areas of cooperation, especially relating to trade. the president has reiterated his strong appreciation for the special relationship between the us and the uk, noted he is looking forward to meeting the prime minister at the g7 summit later this month. the trade war between the united states and china also escalating today, beige and threatening to unleash what it calls countermeasures against us plans to impose tariffs on chinese goods. and the quote from the foreign ministry spokeswoman was, china expresses its strong dissatisfaction and resolute opposition, and if the us implements the talent measures, they will have to ta ke the talent measures, they will have to take measures to re

so do you think iag will chase it?ope to scandinavia business which makes loss. iag could come in and through —— pics free potential issues, which is the long haul business need more protection, and more corporate travellers, which iag could switch on overnight and give them the track record in restructuring low—cost airlines like vueling. they could help norwegian how to improve profitability on the tube to scandinavia routes. it has to raise more funds and it made a loss last year. it is struggling a bit, isn't it? i am concerned at this point. we are at the point where norwegian has not increased any fuel hedges, which means increased in the fuel price hits their bottom line and they are deepening their losses. they are -7.1%, deepening their losses. they are —7.1%, and that is not a pretty picture. norwegian, without any deal, will have to consider restructuring the business fundamentally. are theyjust holding up fundamentally. are theyjust holding up more from iag? it has been made clear today that iag will not pa

iag says the recovery of passenger demand to 2019 levels will take years.ace to advise the public to wear masks in areas where social distancing is difficultm distancing is difficult, such as shops and on public transport. the uk government is yet to announce its decision on masks but the health secretary said their use was based on weak science. spain's prime minister, pedro sanchez, has outlined a four—phase withdrawal from one of europe's strictest lockdowns, with the aim of getting back to something like normality by the end ofjune. social distancing will remain but schools won't re—open until september. president putin says the peak of the coronavirus outbreak in russia has not yet been reached and he's extending the lockdown until may the 12th. he said the spread had been slowed but warned of the risk of acting too quickly to lift restrictions. so far there's been 867 recorded deaths. vietnam has won praise as one of the most successful countries in combating the coronavirus pandemic, so much so, vietnamese nationals in other countries are now returni

iag says the recovery of passenger demand to 2019 levels will take years. homes in england are to be eligible for coronavirus tests from wednesday, whether they have symptoms or not. scotland, wales and northern ireland are expected to follow soon. latest figures suggest a third of all deaths in england and wales related to covid—19 are in care homes. they've not been included in official figures so far. 0ur social affairs correspondent, alison holt reports. at st cecilia's nursing home in scarborough, like many homes across the country, they believe the fight they have been waging against coronavirus for weeks is only now being reflected in officialfigures. this is the area that we will have for anyone that's being barrier nursed. they locked down early, have areas set aside for nursing coronavirus residents, and people stick to their rooms. but still, across the three homes in the group, they've had 11 deaths, four confirmed as covid—19. i was called and did see her for the last — on the day that she died... one of the residents who died was reg kemp's wi

that was the chief executive of iag.ges. this headline from the seattle times. a lot of the newspapers are covering this story that the boss of hours and briefly became the world's richest man before slumping back down to number two. do great riches come with great responsibility? what should we be doing with these levels of wealth? ifi doing with these levels of wealth? if i were him i would use my money in scientific research to help find a cure of aids. a couple of other tweets have also suggested a similar tack. that is interesting. amongst the world of the super rich here is unique in his lack of philanthropy. i'm not sure that is necessarily true. we should acknowledge that people like mr gates has given around 30 billion, he has made a vast contribution to philanthropy. there is a history in the united states of leading players providing large sums of money. he is spending around $1 billion a year on his rocket business. it is all very well saying he should give the money away. he would have to sell the shares. wh

this is notjust disrupting iag, but other carriers.pean commission to enforce the overflight rules, which is part of free movement within the eu. and this is very important. the airlines including iag are saying we are not challenging the controllers right to strike, but why can we not fly over the airspace? why do we have to have the airspace? why do we have to have the flights disrupted ? the airspace? why do we have to have the flights disrupted? when that happens, diverted flights will increase the fuel consumption and eventually the house and knock on impact on the airline ticket price. that is one challenged airlines. another, the rising fuel costs. exactly. and they are showing no signs of abating. 0bviously, fuel, isa signs of abating. 0bviously, fuel, is a fact of life for people. it is something they have to live with. it is their bloodline. they need that fuel to be able to operate, so some airlines hedge against that so that they can manage through the lean times. 0bviously, they have to keep a weather eye on the cost of fu

british airways owner iag is cancelling 75% of flights in april and may.e to ground most of its planes. the uk aviation industry wants more help from the government to survive a long—term travel freeze. there are lots of different ways to do that. one is to prevent those flights from having to take off nearly empty, those ghost flights that we have been dealing with, then there's things like time to pay, facilities through hmrc. be in no doubt, we understand the severity of what is going on. and other operators, including ryanair have warned that the grounding of entire fleets cannot be ruled out. so many airlines are cutting capacity. some are also laying off staff. it's not just capacity. some are also laying off staff. it's notjust the airlines but the other businesses that rely on them to get customers around. it's a crisis of unprecedented scale, and the industry are struggling to get his head round it. meanwhile, on the railways, monday morning rush—hour was much quieter than usual. more companies are asking staff to work from home, overfears about t

norwegian airlines has rejected two separate takeover bids by the british airways owner iag.tes across the atlantic. it said that iag's bids fundamentally undervalue the firm and its prospects for further growth. iag also published some pretty healthy operating profits — up 75% for the first quarter of this year — and it's among the top risers on the ftse today. a bounce back for car sales. after months of falling sales, the industry has finally reported a rise in new car registrations of 10% in april. however, that should be put in context. it is 10% up on april 2017 when sales saw a massive 20% collapse on the introduction of new tax rules. a series of national competitions and programmes are under way, designed to identify, inspire and enable more young people to go into the cyber security profession. they are the winners of a contest designed by the bank and cyber security challenge uk to find the next generation of cyber defenders. they were asked to put together a plan to defend britain's central bank against cyberattacks. but how hard is it to find young people to take

there are some major carriers, like iag, lufthansa, ryanair, these carriers, like iag, lufthansa, ryaups carriers, like iag, lufthansa, ryanair, these groups do have large amounts of cash but they will start to see that go down. it is the smaller carriers, or those that have not been around so long, that you have got to look at to question just how long they can survive. norwegian airlines, with air, alitalia, which has survived so many disasters over the years, can you come out of this? airlines will be sent to government, uk government, we badly need your help now. so far, the government has said we are not prepared to help you. it is going to be interesting to see if they do step in. when you realise just how much of an economic emergency this is, notjust a public health emergency. do airlines have insurance? yes, insurers backed them through the aircraft particularly, doggedly business insurance as well, but as we have seen, airlines do go under. flybe most recently in the uk, and coronavirus really was the nail on the coffin for them. i think you saw last week lufthansa of german

the british airways owner iag has posted record profits of $1.8 billion forjuly to september.ted capacity by almost 18% with the delivery of 20 new aircraft. iag says its forward bookings are looking good, but that it's mindful that economic and geopolitical uncertainties could affect the rest of this year. us chip—maker intel reported results that beat wall street expectations for the july to september quarter. despite its overall revenue declining about 8% the same period a year ago, shares rose about 6% in late trading. the company also said it is on track to catch up with chipmaking rival tsmc in an increasingly competitive industry. american car—maker ford also reported its earnings. but unlike intel, it missed analysts expectations and saw shares falling about 3% in after—hours trading. the us auto sector is also in a state of flux — with ongoing worker strikes that have lasted six weeks, demanding fair pay and better benefits. the company said the strikes will likely reflect in the results for the next quarter. stay in touch with the @bbcbusiness team and me on socials,

in other developments, iag, the pa rent other developments, iag, the parent company of british airwaysas warned the airline could make up to 12,000 workers redundant. agencies is a lack of resources in conflict zones should see the spread of the virus continue, while in france, all food shops will reopen for may the 11th, but bars and reopen for may the 11th, but bars a nd restau ra nts reopen for may the 11th, but bars and restaurants will remain closed. we will have much more on all of stories, but firstjudy much more on all of stories, but first judy bryant much more on all of stories, but firstjudy bryant reports. a salute to the covid warriors. the blue angels and thunderbirds paying tribute to those on the front lines on the battle against corona writers. they flew across the northeast and a —— uplifting spectacle for residents and lockdown. new york continues hit, but today a glimmer of hope. what we've seen is clearly progress. when we can start to make some of the move to open things up, but i will say it again, we are being cautious and careful and governed. it will be gather

shares in iag — the owner of british airways — are down.ing the cost of the disruption — with some estimates suggesting compensation and lost business could cost the airline £150 million. let's get detailed analysis of those stories and the effect they're having on the stock markets. jeremy cook is chief economist at world first — the currency exchange firm. good to see you. let's begin with ba. when you see how much the share price has moved, it is down a little. why you expecting bigger moves, or is that in line with the reaction you would expect from investors ? reaction you would expect from investors? i think there is more to come, to be honest. the reputational risk british airways brand has suffered over the last couple of yea rs suffered over the last couple of years as people realise costs are continuing to be cut, and the proposition is falling away. then there was a pick—up in share prices when they said they would charge for food and short—haul flights but if you cannot get the passengers to where they need to go, that's the ess

let's start with iag, are you surprised shares have risen in iag as opposed to falling?hey started trading this week there was a big reaction, but it's re cove red there was a big reaction, but it's recovered its poise and i think although the big issue is that there's been a pr disaster and that may have long—term consequences particularly because british airways sell premium brands and reputational damage may follow exactly unquantifiable. if you look at the bottom line, is this it outage going to stop people travelling on british airways f it a route they want to travel at a price they want the answer is probably no. the ftse hitting another record today. answer is probably no. the ftse hitting another record todaym fell back towards the latter half of the day, another record, is that about currency position or is something else in play? quite a lot of things in play, the currency in terms of movement we have seen, also arise in terms of the prospects for the commodity centre because of the rise in the oil price we have seen that's all helping. it's quite strange we h

but iag has got liquidity of more than 8 billion sterling, hassan @?eyjust ride this one out quiz ever 8 billion sounds an awful lot, does and it? but if you look at ba there have been roughly 250 aircraft from the smaller airbus models to the very new a3 50s. if you look at roughly those leasing and financing costs, round about $125 million every month just to have those aircraft parked, just to finance them. that's $4 million a day. that is just them. that's $4 million a day. that isjust on the them. that's $4 million a day. that is just on the capital equipment, that does not pay for any of the other overhead. $8 billion can soon whittle away and i think it is important that any business and airline is having to look at its reserves to see how long it can keep going. perhaps i'm not surprised that some consolidation is required at british airways in terms of its hubs. terrible news for the workers there but phil seymour, thank you very much indeed forjoining us here on bbc news. a veteran of the struggle against apartheid in south africa, denis gold

iag says the recovery of passenger demand to 2019 levels will take years.ple to wear cover theirfaces in enclosed public spaces, such as on public transport and in shops, in order to prevent the spread of coronavirus. the announcement marks a divergence with the uk—wide approach, with borisjohnson‘s government reportedly considering scientific evidence for introducing similar advice. a minute's silence was held across the uk this morning to commemorate the essential workers keeping the nation going, in the face of personal danger. more than a hundred nhs and care staff have died with coronavirus, as have many other key workers. china has insisted it should not be blamed for the covid—19 outbreak and has suffered along with the rest of the world during the pandemic. president trump has made it clear he feels beijing should have done more when the virus first emerged. but speaking to stephen sackur on our hardtalk programme, china's ambassador to the uk said, it was the virus, rather than his country, which the us should be targetting. i think presidency and

iag, its shares are down now over 20% just today.e us central bank to cut rates and other measures by central banks, the markets are heading in one direction. do get in touch with us. we will be back tomorrow with plenty more. thanks for being with us. see you soon, goodbye. higher pressure is building from the south. not as straightforward as this area of high pressure giving dry weather because there are weather fronts about and we will still have outbreaks of rain particularly today across scotland and northern ireland, spreading into the afternoon. still some sunshine elsewhere. england and wales, starting with cloud, that will melt away. plenty of dry and sunny weather this afternoon. maximum temperatures, 13. 10 celsius further north and west. tonight, the rain will move south and east but will break out. patchy rain will spread into england and wales. showers behind it. temperatures are staying above freezing, a frost—free night to ta ke above freezing, a frost—free night to take us into tuesday morning. for england and well,

that's according to the airline's owner iag.weekend in may. despite the extra cost though, iag still managed to report a 13.8% increase in half—year operating profits to £803 million. 0perating profits at british airways rose to £663 million. i'm joined by jasper lawler, head of research at lcg. despite the many problems for british airways in recent times, how come it and its parent company company2—mac come it and its parent company compa ny2—mac have come it and its parent company company2—mac have done so well? —— iag have done so well? the main boost has been low fuel prices. we have seen a debt in oil prices —— eight dip in oil prices. 0ver have seen a debt in oil prices —— eight dip in oil prices. over the next year or two, it is quite a good time for airlines because they're able to charge lower fares and that increases demand from passengers so you have increased demand from passengers for flights, economies are doing quite well at the moment, and fuel prices are lower. is it all down to these external factors? 0il—pric

how much cash or liquidity does the iag group does that have on hand at the moment?uarter base. so last thursday, we released figures for our liquidity at the end of april, and we at that point had 6.4 billion euros of cash and cash equivalents, and we had tojump liquidity of ten billion, so 3.6 billion of facilities. we have not drawn on those facilities, those facilities in effect represent debt. so, if we were to draw on them, we would just be taking on additional debt. the talks of using relative strength to drive competitors out of business is total nonsense, and i think you've got to realise the airline industry is not functioning at the moment, we are not flying. 0ur relative strength is the cash that we have, which we are burning through until we can get to a position where we can start flying again and start generating cash to shore up our liquidity. a labour committee member thought mr walsh was overplaying the financial costs. it would occur to me that almost all aircraft are grounded, 80% of your workforce is furloughed and paid for by us, the taxpayers,

iag made around $1.2 billion betweenjanuary and june.n the same period last year, but it has forecast that four profits will match last years. higher strikes are looming for british airways and the fallout from the data breach that saw hackers steal personal information from half a million passengers. the outlook is looking uncertain for the whole aviation industry. we can now talk to our guest, a global aviation expert and senior lecturer at the city university in london. captain tillman, tell us first of all, what are the unique differences between ba and other airlines and to the problems they face because obviously there is something going on in the global aviation industry that is causing this downward trend. the problem we have is that we have a situation here, especially in the uk, with the declining pound. that is caused by this hard brexit, so thatis is caused by this hard brexit, so that is the feeling british airways must consider. the effect of the declining pound will create a lot of higher costs in fuel that is paid for in

indeed, qatar has its own problems at home and it is also a shareholder in iag, the holding company ofa and for the middle east, this is low season because temperatures are very high and people are not travelling. it is and people are not travelling. it is a win—win from that perspective. let's talk about ba's reputation because it was traditionally seen as the flagship carrier, a step up those budget offerings but it feels like all the recent headlines have been about cost—cutting and its consequences. how been about cost—cutting and its consequences. how the airline being viewed? 0range mackreth a lot of people are beginning to wonder whether it has still been the world's favourite airline, it cut food and drink from short—haul flights so you have to buy a sandwich on board if you want it. it has upset most of the travel agents in europe with an announcement they are going to charge additional fees for travel agents to book them from the 1st of november. and obviously, we had the disaster on the bank holiday weekend. it is not looking great. thank you forjoining us. let's take a look

it is iag that ordered these savings.systems if you go ahead with the it systems if you go ahead with the job cuts. however the executive said, we are in charge of the business, it is up to us to run the business, it is up to us to run the airline, and if we feel, we take the airline, and if we feel, we take the consequences for it. actually, they have failed. thank you very much. president macron of france and president macron of france and president putin of russia have said they will intensify efforts to solve they will intensify efforts to solve the conflicts in syria and ukraine. former blue peter presenterjohn noa kes former blue peter presenterjohn noakes has died at the age of 83. i'm upside down! oh! i'm sure it does me good! how's that, then? blue peter has had many presenters, butjohn noakes was special — the cheery, funny daredevil from halifax.

iag argues it wasn't consulted over the plans, but government officials say they were "disappointed" discuss the proposals. from monday, dentists will be allowed back at work, but a survey suggests two—thirds of practices in england are not planning to reopen their doors. many have also told the british dental association they won't be able to offer a full range of services. some say they haven't had time to make necessary adjustments, including fitting perspex screens. people living in the republic of ireland will be able travel anywhere inside their own county from monday, instead of being limited to a range of 20 kilometres from home. the irish cabinet is accelerating the easing of the country's lockdown, allowing groups of up to six people to meet indoors or outside, provided social distancing is maintained. let's speak to our health editor, hugh pym, who's here. more than 40,000 people have died, an unthinkable number, really, at the beginning of this pandemic, for the beginning of this pandemic, for the uk. and the infection rate is patchy across the uk the moment. yes, clive,

iag is settings its sights on the market in european travel to latin america. domestic and international flights to 69 destinations. the spanish airline generated revenue of around $2.3 billion. consumer goods giant unilever has vowed to stop its brands running adverts on porn sites. it comes after its men's grooming range dollar shave club ran a campaign on a controversial pornogrophy site. unilever says it had not been aware of the campaign. sally mentioned this earlier. delhi is the most polluted capital city on the planet and the worst air pollution for years has forced authorities to restrict vehicles on the roads. this is a familiar scheme done all over the place that they are bringing it in in delhi. many schools have been closed, and people are being urged to stay indoors. live now to delhi and our correspondent salman ravi. i was talking to you earlier and you we re i was talking to you earlier and you were saying that you are struggling with this yourself. yes, actually, i am having problems with my respiratory system and a cold because of the weather

iag argues it wasn't consulted over the plans, but uk government officials say they were ‘disappointed from a meeting yesterday, to discuss the proposals. as the protests about the death in police custody of george floyd continue, president trump has said that every american must receive equal treatment from law enforcement, regardless of race, gender, or creed. it comes as a new video has emerged of a 75—year—old man being pushed to the ground by police in new york state. aleem maqbool‘s report contains some content that some may find distressting. we're not leaving. and there's no sign they are. not here outside the white house, in spite of driving rain. and not around the country, including chicago, where kanye west took to the streets with protestors. but there continue to be staggering and disturbing incidents involving police. in buffalo, new york, a 75—year—old protestor was shoved to the ground by an officer. he is seen motionless and bleeding from his skull, as police file past without coming to his aid. two officers have been suspended. but it is just the latest in a torrent

and rail rivals have been attacking the government's flybe rescue plan, with british airways owner iagate aid rules. our resident aviation expert theo leggett has been keeping an eye on this and can bring us up to date. what is the latest with where this is headed? well, this deal, this rescue for flybe was or is going to be controversial and it has attracted a pretty scathing response from the compa ny‘s attracted a pretty scathing response from the company's rivals. you have to remember that flybe is notjust a small company, it was taken over last year by three much bigger ones. one of those is virgin atlantic and one of virgin atlantic's main shareholders is delta, one of the most profitable airlines in the world and questions are being asked about why such deep pocketed investors need the government to step in and help them keep this airline going. in a complaint to the european commission, we have had willie walsh, the outgoing head of iag, the company that owns british airways and iberia, he said virgin delta now just want to use airways and iberia, he said virgin delta nowjust w

its parent company iag announced the planned job cuts as it revealed that revenues had plunged 13% inery of passenger numbers to levels seen last year will take years. sally gethin is an aviation commentator and is here in london. good to have you with us. first, what is your reaction to the news today that british airways are to make 12,000 workers redundant? for me it is not about out of the blue. the same is true for anybody in the airline industry. this is a terrible situation for all the staff obviously but in fact it is going to parfor obviously but in fact it is going to par for the course moving forward for all airlines around the world. and there were going to be morejob losses and more airlines will go under. do you think it was action they were about to take too soon really given the fact that we don't know how this pandemic is going to play out? in particular how things may indeed get to a certain level of normality in the future to do with the aviation sector and how passengers are travelling around the world. they are tightening their bell and looking ahead and they can

iag has always — dump this stock? i don't think so. iag has always been _ dump this stock?s, who were in a lot of pain in terms of the relationship with unions and the need, sadly, lose jobs. it was no doubt necessary. that reflects on the performance today which ultimately protects the long—term business. john today which ultimately protects the long-term business. john strickland, thank ou. the world already produces enough food to feed everyone on the planet, yet millions go hungry. why? food waste. the amount of good food going in the bin every year is enough to fill 23 million 40—tonne trucks. bumper—to—bumper, enough to circle the earth seven times. and all that food costs money. in fact, the average household could save almost $1000 year by buying only the food they ate. now an army of waste warriors is taking action to help us all tackle the problem. today we basically throw away one third of the food we produce on the planet. that is too crazy. we need to find a solution for everybody to actually do something about food waste and really make a difference. we contac

keep an eye on iag, the pa rent take effect.record fine yesterday for the massive data breach last year. we will talk about what else to watch on the trading day ahead but first michelle has the details about what you need to know on wall street. all eyes will be on boeing this tuesday. the aircraft maker is expected to report a drop in deliveries for the second quarter when it releases figures forjune. it‘s been hurt by the extended grounding of its bestselling 737 max jets. on monday, saudi arabian airline flyadeal pulled out of an earlier agreement to buy at least 30 boeing 737 max aircraft. in earnings news, the growing popularity of healthy snacks and beverages is expected to boost sales for pepsico when it reports its second—quarter results. also riding the blue wave, denim, that is, levi strauss is expected to post a rise in second—quarter revenue. that‘s as denim‘s popularity surges. all eyes will, however, be on what the company has to say about tariffs and its exposure to levies. 0n the economic front, it‘s pretty ligh

iag, the owner of ba, saw its shares fall today despite posting a rise in profits of 22.5%.on tourism — but compared to last year, shares still remain up 55%, as budget airlines like air berlin and monarch fail, so what is iag getting right? alex macheras is an aviation analyst. thank you forjoining us on the programme. given all the challenges they have faced, how have they managed to still post rising profits? good morning, well, these are strong results from the iag group and they are the parent company owner of british airways here in the uk, spanish airlines and ireland's national carrier, what they have done well is through this consolidation, they have enabled and outlined a strategy clear for each airline to serve a purpose to work towards profit. they have done that well. there is no middle ground uncertainty as to what airline is doing where. that is what hit airlines and iag have benefitted from their insolvency and bankruptcy like. how have they benefitted from the failure of other airlines? in the failure of other airlines? in the last month alone, we have had t

the current ownership setup of iag will not survive a hard brexit. in your opinion.ing british airways. no one would like an agreement more than i would. but you're not recognising the reality that continental europeans see aviation as a means to put pressure on british people around september, october of 2018 because there will be no agreement. the business of ownership, ryanair has a big issue. in order to have the ability to fly from one destination to another in the european union, 50% plus of the company has to be owned and controlled by eu nationals. true. ryanair is not, it is at 38%. we are at a0%. that is too low. we are buying back 5% of our stock every year. that is not a challenge for me to buy more. so you take money out of uk pension funds supporting ryanair? we are buying back our own shares. at the moment you do not comply with the regulations which will allow you to fly between cities in the european union. at the moment we do because british shareholders are treated as eu citizens. i accept that. in a hard brexit if the uk leaves we will have two fo

a few hours we will see how investors are reacting when the madrid stock exchange opens, ba's owner iagondon and madrid, but the london market is closed today. and our reporter at heathrow, joe lynam, says ba faces a huge compensation bill from passengers left stranded. they passengers left stranded. are obliged under europl rules they are obliged under european rules to apply compensation for even a two—hour delay and some people have been waiting for a day and a half. that could stretch to $700 and thatis half. that could stretch to $700 and that is only one leg. it can see what i mean, you can see thousands of dollars per person multiplied by who knows how many thousands of customers. financially, this is going to cost them. a report from sri lanka. this port in southern sri la nka sri lanka. this port in southern sri lanka opened in 2010 and cost more than $1 billion and was paid for with loans from china. there was only one ship here this morning and it left a little while ago. the next one does not arrive until tomorrow. compare that with these companies are the port in colombia,

but the new boss at iag says, look, he's going to get rid of alex cruz and instead sean doyle will take might be able to steer the airline in the right direction amidst so much turbulence for the airline industry right now. earlier i spoke to the author and poet michael rosen. he is the author of we are going on a bear hunt. you may have a copy at home if you have children. he spoke about spending many weeks in hospital and 48 days in intensive care. i have been talking to him this morning. he has had to learn to walk again, effectively. he told me how thankful he is. unbelievable gratitude. the nhs is a wonder. it is a glory. i go there now, and have been since i left hospital at the end ofjune, i'm going nearly every week for eye procedures, ear, for scans on my chest, so, it's a glory that this thing can save our lives, can look after us, and of course, i'm 74, i was born just before the nhs, but the whole of my conscious lifetime has been in the nhs, and it's a feeling that, it is how a government can act in a loving way, because what it's doing is caring for us, as is said in the c

iag isa finances of ba don't require it. iag is a hugely...deed much better off. so it is totally different as a state of play. that isafair different as a state of play. that is a fair point. i want to go back to angela, if i made. i mean, what can you do to stop this happening? we can't do anything. just listening to len mccluskey and chris loder, this is how we are all feeling at the moment, totally helpless. we are not people who usually feel vulnerable, we are an incredibly strong workforce, we are committed, we are passionate, we do what we do well. and british airways have chosen this time, in particular... neverforget, they chose to let us know via the news. they chose this time while we are furloughed, many others would love to be working, we volunteered to come in and help repatriate people, they chose to do this while we are in our homes, alone and scared, and we feel very, very vulnerable and we hear people argue above our heads, some of which we understand, some of which is too complex legally for us to understand and it is just t