HONG KONG: Hong Kong's flagship carrier Cathay Pacific Airways will further cut the surcharge it imposes to cover fuel costs for most of its passenger flights from July 16, the company said on its website on Wednesday.
Jet fuel costs roughly doubled from the start of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran in late February to early June, before easing after Washington and Tehran struck an interim peace deal. Prices in some markets have since halved from their peak, though they remain above pre-war levels.
* Fuel surcharges for flights between Hong Kong and North America, Europe, the southwest Pacific, the Middle East and Africa will be cut by about 17% from July 16, a Reuters calculation shows, from HK$1,164 to HK$965 ($148.47 to $123.09).
* Surcharges for flights between Hong Kong and the South Asian subcontinent will be reduced from HK$541 to HK$448, also a drop of about 17%.
* For flights from Hong Kong to mainland China, the surcharge will remain at HK$165, while for those going in the opposite direction, it will stay at 135 yuan ($19.87).
* Surcharges on other flights will fall from HK$290 to HK$241.
* The latest reduction marks the third time Cathay has cut fuel surcharges since the start of the Middle East crisis, following previous reductions that took effect on May 16 and July 1.
* The airline said it will continue to review the surcharge every two weeks "to better capture jet fuel price movements in either upward or downward direction."
* Separately, Cathay last week said it would resume its Middle East passenger flights starting from September 1, while cargo arm Cathay Cargo plans to resume freighter services to Riyadh from August 1. - Reuters
