Emirates Airlines has removed fuel surcharges it started imposing last month (read story here), following pronouncements from the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) that volatility in oil prices is short-lived.
Tim Clark, president of Emirates, said: “The removal of this surcharge reflects our long-standing commitment to our customers. We promised from the outset that we would eliminate the surcharge as soon as it was commercially viable, and this has now been done. We continue to closely monitor the situation.” This development is not only a welcome change at a time when most carriers are hiking up the levy but also comes immediately after Emirates announced yesterday that jet fuel amonted to 34.4 percent of the carrier's total operating costs in its 2010/2011 annual report (see story here).
In this month’s report OPEC claimed that there was growing demand for oil from emerging economies and enough supply to meet that demand, despite the political upheaval in Libya, a large supplier.
Meanwhile, the Hong Kong Civil Aviation Department approved another round of raised fuel surcharges for carriers flying into and out of Hong Kong. The levy, imposed on tickets issued between May 1 and 31, has been increased by 34 percent. Surcharges for short-haul flights went up from HK$165 (US$21) to a maximum of HK$222 (US$28) and from HK$747 (US$96) to HK$1030 (US$132) for long-haul flights.
For more information, visit www.emirates.com and www.cad.gov.hk
Alisha Haridasani
