Airlines feel the pinch as jet fuel prices in India up 44% in last 12 months

 

Though, the rise in ATF prices in India has not yet translated into higher airfares.

Sample this. A Delhi-Mumbai round trip ticket is now available at around Rs 11,000 -13,000 range, almost the same price at which it was available a year ago.

According to faredetective.com, which provides historic airfares data, the average ticket price for a Delhi-Mumbai round trip was around Rs 12,000 during August 2017.

However, industry experts are predicting that rising oil prices will push up the cost of air travel.

According to the annual business travel forecast from Carlson Wagonlit Travel (CWT) and the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA), the airfares in India might go up more than seven percent in coming months.

The skyrocketing jet fuel prices have also deteriorated the financials of Indian airline companies as they have struggled to raise prices to match the increase in fuel costs.

IndiGo, India’s largest airline by market share, reported a 97 percent decline in its June-quarter net profit to Rs 811.14 crore, a year ago.

SpiceJet reported a loss of Rs 38.06 crore during the same quarter against a profit of Rs 175 crore in the same quarter a year before.

Jet Airways has earlier posted a loss of Rs Rs 1,036 crore in the March ending quarter which eroded the profits posted in the previous three-quarters.

However, the airline is yet to declare results for the previous quarter as the company has deferred its June quarter results.