GOOD NEWS PILIPINAS - February 20, 2009

<< back to news

DPWH projects set to open 500,000 jobs

National flag carrier Philippine Airlines and budget airline Cebu Pacific have removed fuel surcharges on their international flights.

Cebu Pacific waiving the fees means a 17-percent reduction in its fares, the airline said.

While Philippine Airlines said it removed as much as $38 from its fuel surcharge in selected international flights on Feb. 14.

“With the decline in fuel prices, we are able to pass it on to our customers,” Cebu Pacific president Lance Gokongwei told reporters.

“We will grow in this crisis.”

Fuel and insurance surcharges cost $40 to $75 one way after world oil prices soared last year.

But Gokongwei said jet fuel prices had fallen from a peak of $181 a barrel in July 2008 to about $60 this year. As a result, fuel’s share in the company’s total operating cost dropped to 30 percent this year from 60 percent last year.

Falling fuel prices also allowed Cebu Pacific to announce a new promo fare of P1,999 one way for flights from Manila to Bangkok, Hong Kong, Ho Chi Minh, Kaohsiung, Kota Kinabalu, Kuala Lumpur, Macau, Singapore and Taipei.

Gokongwei said the company expected to fly nine million passengers this year, up from 6.7 million last year, as a result of its lower fares.