easyJet says Stelios backs down on EGM

British budget airline easyJet said Stelios Haji-Ioannou, its founder and largest shareholder, has withdrawn his request to convene an extraordinary general meeting to remove a member of its board.
Haji-Ioannou, whose family own about 38% of easyJet, had been seeking to remove Rigas Doganis, an easyJet non-executive director, in protest over the airline's plans to buy new aircraft from Airbus.
"The board of easyJet welcomes this withdrawal as it viewed an EGM as an unnecessary and costly distraction," the firm said on Friday.
"easyJet looks forward to engaging constructively with easyGroup (Haji-Ioannou's vehicle) as it does with its other shareholders."
On Thursday easyJet raised its full-year profit guidance and said it would return around 190 mln pounds ($291 mln) to shareholders.
Haji-Ioannou had been calling for a payout for several years.
Shares in easyJet closed Thursday at 312 pence, valuing the business at about 1.34 bln pounds.