A Wall Street Journalarticle says airline ticket prices are climbing again. The article quotes a Harrell Associates LLC survey that found ticket prices are up 11% so far this year. Ticket prices usually start to fall this time of year but they are climbing higher instead.
"I think for the consumer, it's as good as we're going to get right now,” says Rick Seaney, chief executive of FareCompare.com. "Some prices are $50 to $100 higher than just a few days ago."
The average leisure fare in a Harrell Associates LLC survey of 100 popular domestic air markets jumped 11% to $216 before airport and government fees and surcharges in one week this month after airlines pushed through a broad price increase. Typically, prices start dropping as airlines focus on slower seasonal travel in August and after Labor Day, but that hasn't happened yet this year.
The WSJ also says data from the travel section of Microsoft's new Bing search engine also shows rising prices. The average ticket price on Bing Travel has climbed from $259 to $281 over a three week preriod.
Rising airfares seem unusual for a deep recession but the WSJ story says many of the lower priced seats have been sold out. Less flights being offered could also have something to do with it. If weak economic data keeps oil prices from rising then it is possible airfares could be lower again this fall.
