FuelClub Discount

Airline executives forecast bankruptcies, job cuts and increased ticket prices yesterday as Air France-KLM plunged the industry into further gloom with a warning that its profits would fall by a third under the weight of rising fuel costs.

Shares in the Franco-Dutch carrier were marked down 10 per cent to ?16.74 amid fears that its fuel bill would be ?5.7 billion (?4.5 billion) this year, up from ?4.6 billion in 2007.

The warning from the world’s biggest airline by revenue provoked fresh turbulence in a sector already unsettled by Wednesday’s announcement from American Airlines that it would charge passengers to check in luggage in an effort to generate additional revenue. With Qantas, the Australian flag carrier, putting up the cost of international flights by 4 per cent and Japan Airlines also set to raise its fuel surcharge, executives predicted fewer passengers and a bleak outlook for the industry.

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OPEC chief Abdala El-Badri on Thursday said members were unhappy with surging prices he blamed on speculators and a weak US dollar.

“We are not very happy with this increase in oil prices,” said El-Badri during a visit to Ecuador.

“Volatility has nothing to do with the fundamentals. It has nothing to do with world demand,” he said, stressing that a dropping dollar was driving prices higher.

“The price was at 130 dollars and today is at 135, so it’s really a crazy market,” he said.
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Crude oil prices continue to soar. Crude futures prices are setting new records daily and bolted to 135 dollars per barrel on the New York market Wednesday.

There is no particular bullishness about the rises, the prices are just increasing because more and more speculative money is flowing into crude oil markets. Some observers warn that crude oil prices could exceed 150 dollars if this goes on.

When the price reached 100 dollars a barrel, economists rightly predicted that high crude oil prices would dampen the world economy. If oil exceeds 150 dollars, further adverse effects cannot be avoided.
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Crude oil prices continue to soar. Crude futures prices are setting new records daily and bolted to 135 dollars per barrel on the New York market Wednesday.

There is no particular bullishness about the rises, the prices are just increasing because more and more speculative money is flowing into crude oil markets. Some observers warn that crude oil prices could exceed 150 dollars if this goes on.

When the price reached 100 dollars a barrel, economists rightly predicted that high crude oil prices would dampen the world economy. If oil exceeds 150 dollars, further adverse effects cannot be avoided.
(more…)

The cost of travelling is set to rise again as passengers face record prices at the pumps and changes at the ticket office.

Wales now has the highest diesel prices with a litre costing 124.17p.

A bid to make train fares less complicated will see some tickets for cross country journeys from Wales rising by a third.
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If you think gas is expensive, be thankful you’re not a trucker. Filling up an 18-wheel, 80,000-pound leviathan can top $1,300 these days.

Because of short supply, the price of diesel has risen more than twice as much as gasoline in the past year, reaching an all time high of $4.33 a gallon last week. With little hope of a near-term decline — oil hit a record $129.07 a barrel Tuesday — the run-up is causing panic and prompting radical cultural and technological shifts in the struggling trucking industry.

Instead of obsessing over chrome trim or the latest cab amenities to ease life on the road, truck owners and operators fed up with getting 5 miles per gallon are delving into long-ignored subjects like aerodynamics, slower cruising speeds and more efficient tires.
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