"These results from IAG really do bring out just how painful the last year has been for the airline industry. While they've cut capacity by two-thirds, it was still not possible to fill planes profitably ... when the dust settles, we are likely to see that low-cost carriers like Ryanair and Wizz Air have come out of 2020 in far better shape."

That was the verdict of aviation analyst Jack Winchester at consultancy firm Third Bridge, as British Airways' parent company announced the biggest loss in the firm's history. 

Along with more outspoken voices, like that of Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary, there is a growing consensus among industry watchers that the COVID-19 pandemic is permanently reshaping aviation. 

Elsewhere, the biggest float on the New York markets last year hasn't proved enough to stop Airbnb posting losses for the first time since going public. The room-sharing site also lost billions in a troubled fourth quarter.

On the markets, too, some steam is coming out of tech stocks as worries about overvaluations and rising government debt have seen investors refocus on bricks-and-mortar shares.

But there is hope for the travel industry, with strong demand reported for summer holidays. CGTN Europe has been speaking to the boss of the online Thomas Cook agency, who tells us that bookings are booming everywhere from Antalya to Ibiza this summer. Read on for his thoughts. 

And home food delivery is another industry that looks set to be with us long after the pandemic is over, just ask the bosses at DoorDash. But as our graphic shows, eating "in" instead of "out" hasn't been enough to save the food industry from overall slumping sales during COVID-19. 

Read on for more on this and the rest of the day's business news in full.

Louise Greenwood,

Digital business correspondent 

P.S. Did someone forward this to you? Sign up here

British Airways parent IAG has reported the biggest loss in the firm's history. International Airlines Group made an annual loss of $8.9 billion last year, one of the worst on the FTSE 100 index of leading shares. IAG, which owns Spain's Iberia and Vueling airlines and Ireland's Aer Lingus, has been hit hard by a loss of business travelers and fewer long-haul bookings amid the COVID-19 pandemic. With border restrictions in many key markets, IAG says it expects to fly just a fifth of its 2019 schedule in the first three months of the year.

With revenues falling 75 percent to $6.6 billion, the firm has called for the swift introduction of digital "health passports" to aid a recovery in the airline sector. However, there was a glimmer of light with a better-than-expected performance in BA's cargo business, with revenues rising $242 million to $1.5 billion, which it says "helped to make long-haul passenger flights viable". IAG CEO Luis Gallego stressing pent-up consumer demand and called for "international common testing standards and the introduction of digital health passes to reopen our skies safely." 

In more bad news for the travel sector, Airbnb has posted losses in its first set of financial results since becoming a publicly listed company. The online room rental site made a loss of $3.9 billion in the final quarter of last year, which analysts are putting down to one-off costs from its record $47 billion December flotation. Airbnb says quarterly revenues dropped by 22 percent year-on-year to $859 million. The company, has been stung by tough new regulations from authorities in cities such as Paris. It added that, while it expects revenues to fall again in the first quarter, 2021 looks hopeful, with research showing just over half of Americans have already booked a trip or say they plan to travel this year.

Stock markets globally have seen heavy losses amid a sharp sell-off in government bonds. Analysts say fears over rising inflation, as economies announce recovery spending plans from the COVID-19 pandemic, are making debt assets look too risky. European Central Bank members have hinted that more support could be provided if rising bond yields undermine the eurozone recovery. Investors are also pivoting away from tech and targeting commodity and energy stocks, seen as a safer short-term bet.    

Bitcoin looks to be on track for its worst week of trading in a year. Despite recent corporate endorsements, the virtual currency was down more than 10 percent on Thursday and was selling at $45,350 in London pre-market trading, having lost a fifth of its value since the weekend. It's the largest one-day percentage loss for the virtual currency in more than a month, with similar losses for rivals Ethereum and Tether. 

The latest business figure to voice his skepticism over the currency is Bill Gates. Commenting through the social media app Clubhouse, the Microsoft founder said he preferred to invest in businesses "that make products," warning investors: "If you have less money than Elon [Musk] you should probably watch out!"

Trading in GameStop was halted due to volatility on the New York markets on Thursday as stock rose 85 percent. Shares finally ended the day up a more modest 18 percent at $108.73 each. Stock in the firm has risen by 1,600 percent in a matter of days, although prices have fallen sharply from recent highs.

Home food delivery app firm DoorDash has reported revenue of $970 million for the last three months of 2020, a 226 percent increase on the same period the year before and ahead of analysts' estimates. Full-year losses at DoorDash, which is now the largest operator by market share in the U.S., narrowed to $461 million last year. Boss Tony Xu has said the firm has benefited from long-term changes in consumer habits arising from COVID-19 lockdowns, despite competition in the sector hotting up. 

The French owner of Louis Vuitton and Christian Dior is buying the German sandal maker Birkenstock in a $4.8 billion deal. Financiere Agache, run by French billionaire Bernard Arnault and private equity group L.Catterton, has bought a majority stake in the shoemaker. Birkenstock said the investment will help it expand in China and India and fund its online sales business.  

A Boeing 777 cargo plane has made an emergency landing at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport due to engine problems, according to operator Rossiya Airlines. However, the 15-year-old plane does not use the Pratt & Whitney PW4000 engines, under scrutiny after a fire aboard a United Airlines flight over Denver last weekend. Russian federal aviation agency Rosaviatsiya says it is not currently considering suspending the operation of the aircraft.

Meanwhile, Australia is lifting its near two-year ban on Boeing 737 MAX planes, becoming among the first in the Asia-Pacific region to do so. While no Australian airlines operate the 737 MAX, Virgin Australia has 25 of the planes on order and Singapore and Fiji Airways both operate them on international flights to the country. "We ... are confident that the aircraft are safe," the Civil Aviation Safety Authority said in a statement.

The number of cars built in the UK fell by 27 percent last month. The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said just over 86,000 cars were built, down more than 32,000 on January last year and the worst January figure for more than a decade, as COVID-19 and border problems after Brexit dragged on demand. 

Elsewhere, talks are continuing over the future of the Vauxhall motor plant in the North West of England. Managers at its parent group Stellantis say talks with the government have been "productive but not conclusive." The Vauxhall owner is understood to be seeking incentives to turn the plant into a base for electric vehicle production.  

More than 11 million new urban jobs were added nationwide in China last year, according to new data, ahead of targets. The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security said the jobless rate in urban areas stood at 5.6 percent.

A new driverless electric bus has begun operating in the Spanish city of Malaga, the first of its kind in Europe. The bus, which runs on an 8 km loop linking Malaga's port to the city center, was developed by the Spanish company Irizar. While other driverless pilot projects are under way across Europe, including a similar scheme in the Netherlands, none involves a regular-size urban bus running on a street alongside standard vehicles. 

READ MORE

Miss the commute? You're not alone

Worried about an asteroid hitting the Earth?

WATCH: Could a world heavyweight title boxing fight between Anthony Joshua and Chinese fighter Zhang Zhilei be coming to the Bird's Nest Stadium in Beijing in 2022?

UK holiday firms have reported a surge in bookings as the government announced plans to ease its third national lockdown. CGTN Europe spoke to Alan French, CEO of online travel agency Thomas Cook, who gave us his response to the plans. 

To start with, the news on Monday was fantastic. Everybody's itching to start planning the summer holidays and we saw a huge level of interest coming onto the site as a result of that. Coming on from that, when is it going to be safe? And I think that most people have come to the conclusion that later this summer is going to be safer than earlier this summer. So we've seen a lot of bookings, particularly in Europe, for later in the summer. And then ... later on in the year for more exotic destinations like the U.S. and Dubai. 

We're obviously thinking through what it means in terms of how can we safely get people to those destinations and get them back again in as hassle-free a way as is possible? And I think that requires a level of coordination between government bodies on the departure and the arrival end. 

What's been the biggest challenge? 

I think if you go to launch a travel business in the middle of a pandemic, you're going to be pretty robust and you've got to be prepared for pretty much everything. And I think it's fair to say in the six months that we've been trading, we've seen almost everything in terms of rocketing demand. And then we've seen governments restricting our sales processes. We've seen countries come on sale, go off sale, sometimes unexpectedly, sometimes expectedly. So it's really been a roller-coaster ride. 

When will things be back to normal?

I think we're a long way from normal. I think the government announcing its roadmap on Monday was very helpful in starting the recovery process, but … it's only three days old. So we've got a long way to go. There are a lot of things that could be thrown at us in that period of time. I do think with the vaccination program, though, we can see light at the end of the tunnel.

And finally, revenues are up at DoorDash and other food delivery firms that have boomed in lockdown. But the figures show that sales of "in-home" food and drink aren't enough to make up for wider losses in the industry from COVID-19.