Asian Airlines Face a $148-a-Barrel Fuel Gamble

Asian airlines are facing expiring jet fuel hedge contracts and need to make a choice about whether to hedge at exorbitant prices or risk them going even higher without a hedge. Citing industry executives, Reuters reported today that jet fuel prices in Asia are currently about 75% higher than they were before the war in the Middle East started, and that the chance of that changing dramatically in the observable future appears to be slim. “Our view is that we are facing a new normal where the fuel price is there to stay at the levels that…