Cathay Pacific, Thai Airways and El Al have become the latest carriers to announce cuts in fuel surcharges in response to plummeting oil prices.

The price of a barrel of oil has fallen by about a third in the past few weeks amid fears over the global economy. The investment analyst Merrill Lynch believes the price of a barrel of crude - which hit a record high of $147 in July - will drop to about $50 next year.

British Airways and Virgin passengers, however, are unlikely to benefit.

BA, which says it has no plans to drop surcharges, is under increasing pressure from the travel industry to incorporate fuel levies into the ticket price, thereby making its pricing more transparent. The airline says that to do so would “be a logistical nightmare” - and it knows a thing or two about those.

Virgin says that despite the drop in oil prices, the market is too volatile for it to drop surcharges yet: “We keep the matter under daily review, but until prices remain low for a sustained period, the surcharge will remain.”

Fortunately, not all airlines are quite so intransigent. In a swift response to the latest developments, Cathay Pacific has lowered its fuel surcharge by 10% on long-haul flights and 5% on short-haul.

Thai Airways has announced a 30% cut and El Al has introduced savings of between 9.5% and 16.8%. They join Air France, KLM and Singapore Airlines, which have all lowered surcharges in recent weeks.

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