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Fewer, pricier flights and job cuts

Monday, 9 June 2008


PARIS, June 8 (AFP): As oil prices soar, airlines are coming back down to earth with a bump-cutting routes and capacity, ramping up prices and axing jobs as bosses freely admit the industry is in the "worst crisis since 9/11."

Oil prices Friday broke through the 139-dollar-a-barrel level for the first time in New York and 138 dollars in London, powered by a wilting dollar.

A weakening US currency lowers the cost of dollar-priced goods, such as oil, for foreign buyers and drives up demand.

With sober analysts such as Goldman Sachs suggesting the price could reach 200 dollars a barrel within two years, the aviation industry appears to be in a nose-dive.