February flight ticket prices increased by 7.1% year-on-year, according to CPI data

Investing.com – According to data released by Jefferies, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that airline ticket prices in February increased by 7.1% year-over-year, a significant acceleration compared to the 2.2% rise in January.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) for February rose 2.4% year-over-year, in line with market expectations and January data. On a month-over-month basis, the CPI increased by 0.3%, also meeting expectations.

After seasonal adjustment, airline ticket prices rose 1.4% month-over-month in February. Year-over-year, prices increased by 7.1%, after declining 3.4% in December.

The acceleration in airline ticket prices is achieved on a relatively easy comparison base, as February 2025 saw a 0.8% decline in ticket prices year-over-year. It is expected that before June, airline prices will continue to face a relatively lenient year-over-year comparison base, as spring 2025 travel demand is affected by geopolitical tensions and tariff concerns.

This week, ISTAT Americas noted that despite Middle East conflicts and rising fuel costs, air travel remains resilient.

Core CPI for February increased by 2.5% year-over-year, up 0.2 percentage points from January. In the core CPI data, after seasonal adjustment, airline ticket prices in February rose 1.4 percentage points month-over-month compared to January.

Adjusted for CPI, the real airline ticket price index is 0.60, up 4.5% year-over-year, and 17% below the average level of 2019. Based on available time series data since 1989, despite nominal ticket prices rising sharply, real ticket prices have been declining, with a 24% decrease over the past 12 months compared to 1989. Since 2014, real airline ticket prices have decreased at a compound annual growth rate of 5%.

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