FRANKFURT, Germany_Pinched by rising oil costs, Lufthansa AG said Tuesday that its cargo unit would raise the fuel surcharge by 5 euro cents to 60 euro cents, or 75 U.S. cents, per kilogram starting May 15.
The airline said last week it would raise the fuel surcharge on passenger flights by €10, or about US$12.50, on long-haul flights starting May 5. It plans to keep the surcharge on flights within Europe at €12, or about US$15 per flight leg.
The last time the airline's cargo unit raised the surcharge was April 24, when it rose from 50 euro cents to 55 euro cents, or 63 U.S. cents to 69 U.S. cents. In March, Lufthansa Cargo said it had spent €421 million, or US$527.8 million on fuel in 2005, up 27 percent from the €332 million it spent in 2004.
Cologne-based Lufthansa said it expects it total fuel charges this year to rise about 40 percent to around €3.5 billion, or US$4.4 billion.
High oil prices have caused other European carriers to make similar increases, too.
British Airways PLC raised its surcharge on long-haul passenger flights to 35 pounds (€50.65; US$63.94) from 30 pounds (€43.41; US$54.80) last month, while AirFrance-KLM did the same, raising the long-haul passenger surcharge to €51, or US$64, from €44, or around US$55.
In trading Tuesday, oil prices were at US$74.18 a barrel.
Shares of Lufthansa were up 1.2 percent to €14.80 (US$18.55) in Frankfurt trading.
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On the Net:
http://www.lufthansa-cargo.com
(mpm-dr)
