SINGAPORE: Singapore Airlines (SIA) said Friday it would raise fuel surcharges by up to $28 for each leg of a flight due to high oil prices, a persistent problem that has ravaged airline earnings worldwide.
It blamed "continued high fuel prices" for the hike, which it said would apply to all tickets issued on or after March 8.
It said in a statement that the new fuel surcharge, representing an increase of between $2 and $28 per sector of a flight depending on distance and class of travel, would apply to Singapore Airlines and its regional wing, SilkAir.
The surcharges "will offer only partial relief from the higher operating costs arising from increases in the price of jet fuel," SIA stated, adding that fuel accounted for 40 percent of the group's expenditure.
The price hike -- the airline's first this year after similar surcharge increases were imposed three times in 2011 -- comes a month after SIA announced that its third-quarter net profit had plunged 53 percent year-on-year due to soaring fuel costs.
Other regional airlines have also been hit by high oil prices, with Malaysia Airlines and Air New Zealand the two latest casualties to blame the cost of oil for their dismal earnings.
Brent crude for April delivery hit a four-year high Thursday, touching $128.40 a barrel before falling slightly.
New York's main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in April also hit nine-month highs Thursday. It was down 73 cents to $108.11 a barrel in Asian afternoon trade Friday.
Fears centred on Iran's nuclear programme will continue to push oil prices higher, said IG Markets strategist Justin Harper.
"The sticky black cloud on the horizon is rising oil prices... Already anxious over Iran, oil traders are as jumpy as a box of frogs as any threat or rumour of supply disruption leads to wide-scale panic," he said in a report.
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