Fuel shock meets faith: Iran war drives up pilgrimage costs for South-east Asian Muslims

[JAKARTA/KUALA LUMPUR] The conflict in the Middle East is casting a shadow over one of the world’s largest religious travel markets, raising concerns that soaring fuel prices and geopolitical uncertainty could make the pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia significantly more expensive for millions of South-east Asian Muslims.

Higher jet fuel prices, a weakening currency and rising geopolitical uncertainty are driving up operating costs across the aviation and travel sectors.

Farid Aljawi, chairman of the Indonesia Haj and Umrah Travel Operators Association (Bershatu), estimated the actual operational cost of this year’s Haj may already be about 25 per cent higher than previous years. This is due to a combination of higher jet fuel prices, rupiah depreciation and rising service costs in Saudi Arabia.