The tour operator has 19 percent fewer holidays left to sell than last year, with more people wanting to book breaks in Spain than it has available, Thomas Cook said today. First-half revenue rose 7 percent, according to the company, which also said it has hedged most of its fuel requirements for the year.

Thomas Cook gained 3.1 percent in London trading, the most in seven weeks. The company, formed by a merger a year ago, and larger competitor TUI Travel Plc are holding or raising prices even as higher living costs sap disposable incomes and falling house-prices erode consumer confidence. An annual summer vacation is the one of the last things consumers will sacrifice, according to Chief Executive Officer Manny Fontenla-Novoa.

``The market had expected an upbeat trading statement and it has got one,'' wrote Derren Nathan, an analyst at Blue Oar Securities in London with a ``hold'' rating on the stock. ``Short breaks and second holidays might understandably be coming under some pressure -- but Thomas Cook says that they are not.''

Thomas Cook rose 7.25 pence to 241.5 pence in London. That was the fourth-biggest advance in the U.K. benchmark FTSE 100 Index, which dropped 0.6 percent. The shares have fallen 14 percent this year, less than TUI Travel's 29 percent decline.

``We are in a very good position for the summer season,'' Fontenla-Novoa said in the statement. ``I remain confident that we will achieve our goals for this year.''

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Copyright (C) 2007 Alain Georgette / Copyright (C) 2006 Frantisek Hliva. All rights reserved.