China raises air ticket surcharges

The General Administration of Civil Aviation said Friday it will raise domestic fuel surcharges on fares from September 1 to offset high jet-fuel costs, the Wall Street Journal reported. Passenger surcharges will be raised to US$7.52 from US$3.76 for flights of less than 800 kilometers. For flights of more than 800 kilometers, the surcharge will be raised to US$12.53 from US$7.52, China's airline regulator said. Fuel surcharges have more than doubled since the beginning of this year. Jet fuel accounts for about 40% of the total operating costs of domestic airlines. China raised domestic jet-fuel prices by about 5% to US$725 a metric ton from July 21, its third hike since March, when a ton of jet fuel cost US$588.