Air China, the national carrier, has decided to further lift the additional fees for jet fuel on the international routes by almost 100 percent starting on Thursday, the Beijing News reported yesterday.

The additional fees for jet fuel on the routes to the US, Europe, Australia and the Middle East have risen by 168 yuan (US$20.7) to 330 yuan (US$40.7) starting on October 20, the report said.

The fees on the routes to South Korea will be hiked to 210 yuan (US$25.9) from 98 yuan (US$12) starting from November 1.

Passengers who take flights to the Asia-Pacific region, Karachi, a port city of Pakistan, and Katmandu, capital of Nepal, will pay extra 112 yuan (US$13.8) for the additional fees on jet fuel.

However, the additional fees for jet fuel on routes to Japan, Hong Kong and Macao will remain the same.

The soaring oil price has driven Air China to levy additional fees for jet fuel on its domestic flights since August.

It was reported that jet fuel made up 30 percent of Air China's overall operating expenses last year.

(Xinhua News Agency October 22, 2005)