The price of oil has hit a new record of $98 a barrel, exacerbating pressure on airlines to raise fares.
The oil price has risen 40% since August and appears poised to break its highest-ever level in 1980 – following the Iranian Revolution and beginning of the Iran-Iraq war – when the UK went into recession. The price then hit an inflation-adjusted level of just under $102 a barrel.
The fall in the value of the dollar has so far offset some of the price increase, since most oil purchases are made in dollars.
But fuel is now the biggest single cost for carriers, with prices four times the rate of five years ago. Average economy airfares have stagnated or fallen over the same period.