P.M. BRIEFING : Northwest Hikes Fares Over Fuel

Northwest Airlines said today it will raise fares 5.8% on tickets purchased on or after Oct. 31.

“The price increase is designed to further combat higher operating costs resulting from fuel prices that have more than doubled since Iraq invaded Kuwait Aug. 2,” the airline said.

Northwest, the nation’s fourth largest carrier, and other airlines already have raised fares 9.5% in two steps since late August.

Since the start of the Mideast crisis, the spot price for jet fuel has jumped from about 57 cents a gallon to $1.42 a gallon.

In another effort to cope with fuel costs, Northwest last week asked its labor unions to consider a 10% wage cut for half a year in lieu of layoffs. But the International Assn. of Machinists, the carrier’s largest union, rejected wage cuts.