National Express Group PLC (LSE:NEX) said passenger journeys are continuing to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic as it reported that revenue grew by 33% year-on-year in the third quarter and was 5% ahead of pre-Covid 2019.
The transport group reiterated its forecast for 2022 results to be broadly in line with expectations.
Its Spanish subsidiary ALSA saw revenue jump 35% in the three months to 30 September 2022, with growth of 30% in the UK, 63% in Germany and 11% in North America.
"I am pleased to report sustained momentum across the group and another period of operational progress and revenue growth. We continue to see strengthening passenger numbers in our coach businesses in the UK and Spain, and we are focused on meeting our driver recovery targets for the full year in our North America school bus division,” commented group chief executive Ignacio Garat in a statement.
"We are well positioned for the current inflationary environment with long-term supply contracts, fuel hedging, and a proven ability to pass through price increases over time.
“While we are mindful of the challenges we face in our sector, we are confident in our Evolve strategy and look forward to making further progress," he added.
The company said it expects non-staff cost inflation of around 4% over the next 12 months. Staff cost negotiations are ongoing and are progressing in line with expectations, it added.