Airfare rises to hit some countries harder in 2020

Travelers in Australia, Indonesia and South Africa will have to dig deeper in 2020 as they are hit with airfare increases well above the global average. South Africans face overall fare increases of 8.9 percent, Indonesians are set to be slugged another 7.9 percent and Australians are facing a rise of 5.1 percent, according to a new report. READ: United does US biometric deal . That compares with an average rise in the latest Global Travel Forecast by CWT and the Business Travel Association of 2.1 percent in US dollar terms for the Asia-Pacific and 1.2 percent globally. And how hard you are hit will depend on class of travel and destination. The latest Global Travel Forecast by CWT and the Business Travel Association also suggests how hard you will be hit depends on where you’re traveling and in what class. Australian business travelers, for example, are tipped to see 7.1 percent increase on domestic routes and a 6.1 percent rise on international flights. Economy travelers Downunder will see a smaller 4.7 percent increase for domestic flights but a bigger 7.2 percent increase on international routes. Other markets to see above-average increases include China (4.4 percent), New Zealand (3.1 percent) and the Philippines (2.4 percent). Asia-pacific countries set to escape big overall fare rises include Singapore, Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea.  and India The report notes that global uncertainty and slower economic growth has affected the once stratospheric growth of aviation in the Asia-Pacific but says it will remain the fastest-growing region. It also identifies a number of global risks that could affect air travel such as US-China trade tensions, the possibility of a recession in the major economies, the impact of oil prices and Middle east disturbances, below-trend inflation and the volatility in the US dollar. South Africa tops the list of airfare increases in the Europe, Middle East and Africa region followed by Azerbaijan (8.1 percent), Ukraine (6.4 percent), Sweden (5.7 percent) and Norway (4.1 percent). But some countries — such as Belgium, Finland, Germany, Italy and much of Eastern Europe  — are tipped to see prices fall. The net result is expected to be a 0.5 percent overall increase in fares for Western Europe and a slight fall in eastern Europe. Major Middle East hubs the United Arab Emirates and Qatar are expected to see rises of 2.1 percent and 1.9 percent, respectively. This should see average fares for the Middle East and Africa rise 2.2 percent. In Latin America, passengers should see small airfare falls in Argentina and Brazil, a 2.8 percent drop in Peru and a massive 22.5 percent fall in troubled Venezuela. Chile tops the increases at 2.5 percent with Colombia rising 1.0 percent and Mexico up 0.8 percent. The airfare forecast for North America is for an overall 2.3 percent increase with Canada rising 3.2 percent and the US 2.3 percent. The highest rise is forecast for Canadian domestic economy fares, up a steep 5.7 percent. However, the report warns that North American airlines are also looking to ancillary fees as a way to stay competitive.