Wednesday’s inflation report from the government gave some respite to travelers as airfares are all set to go down substantially.
According to the government, the average airline ticket price dropped 7.8% in July, to $311, after a 1.8% dip in June. Lower prices for gasoline and travel were big reasons that overall inflation slowed a bit in July, although consumer prices were still up 8.5% from a year ago.
SOURCE: CNBC (Christopher Occhicone | Bloomberg | Getty Images)
This being said, travelers should be aware that July’s average ticket was still 27.7% higher than in July of last year. Fares peaked in May when sales for summer vacations were in full swing.
Airlines have been able to push fares higher because demand is matching or beating pre-pandemic levels at a time when airlines are operating fewer flights. The airlines also cite fuel prices, which have roughly doubled since 2019.
Usually, prices fall in late summer and early autumn as vacations end and kids return to school. But this time, the drop is expected to be more dramatic because summer prices were so high, and also the cost of jet fuel has dropped about one-fourth since late April.
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