British airport operator BAA reported a 7 per cent rise in June passenger traffic today as the travel industry continues to recover from last year's slump.
BAA, whose seven British airports include London's Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted hubs, said traffic last month totalled 12.8 million passengers.
The airline and travel industry has been steadily recovering from last year's woes, when the effects of the Iraq war, SARS virus and a global economic downturn caused a drop in passenger numbers.
Leading airlines such as Air France-KLM, British Airways and Ryanair all posted higher passenger numbers for June this week.
BAA said Stansted airport had the fastest growth out of its three London airports and that long-distance routes also enjoyed rising traffic. BAA's north Atlantic market grew 8.2 per cent, while European-scheduled traffic rose 9.6 per cent.
BAA shares closed at 556 pence yesterday. The stock has outperformed the benchmark FTSE 100 index by about 16 per cent since the start of 2004 and has gained around 17 per cent in value over that period.