Oil prices are surging and becoming unbearable! United Airlines (UAL.US) luggage fees are increasing, Amazon (AMZN.US) is adding fuel surcharges, and a wave of cost transfers is coming.

Zhitong Finance APP learned that as volatility in the global energy market intensifies, the surge in transportation costs is quickly spreading to the consumer end, triggering a wave of collective fare adjustments across the aviation and logistics industries.

Among them, United Airlines (UAL.US) officially announced this Friday that, affected by continuously rising fuel prices, it will raise checked baggage fees for domestic routes within the United States and certain international routes. Starting on April 3, 2026, passengers flying with United Airlines to destinations within the United States, Mexico, Canada, and Latin America will see an across-the-board increase of $10 for their first and second checked bags.

Specifically, if passengers prepay at least 24 hours before departure, the fee for the first bag will be set to $45; if paying at the airport ticket counter on the spot, the fee will be $50.

United Airlines last increased checked baggage fees in 2024. Like other airlines, this move aims to address the sharp recent surge in aviation fuel costs.

According to Argus data released by the aviation industry association “Airlines for America,” on Wednesday, the average fuel price in Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, and New York reached $4.56 per gallon, an increase of more than 82% compared with February 28, since the U.S.-Iran attacks.

United Airlines said this measure is a necessary step to address pressure on operating costs, but passengers holding certain co-branded credit cards or with elite membership status can continue to enjoy baggage-fee discount policies.

“United Airlines Chase credit cardholders, MileagePlus Premier members, active-duty military personnel, and passengers traveling in premium cabins can still check one bag for free, and in most markets, if passengers prepay their baggage fee online 24 hours before the flight departs, they can still receive a $5 discount,” United Airlines said.

Meanwhile, e-commerce giant Amazon (AMZN.US) has also responded to the spike in logistics costs. Amazon officially announced that it will charge a 3.5% fuel and logistics surcharge to third-party sellers using its logistics delivery service (FBA) starting April 17, 2026.

This policy covers FBA sellers operating in the United States and Canada, and will also expand starting May 2 to related services for multi-channel fulfillment and “purchasing with Prime.” Although Amazon says this move is also to respond to abnormal fuel price fluctuations caused by geopolitical risks, it marks a structural adjustment in the platform’s fulfillment costs; the average logistics spending per item will increase by about $0.17.

“Rising fuel and logistics costs have pushed up operating costs across the entire industry.” On Thursday, Amazon spokesperson Ashley Vanisek said in a statement, “We previously absorbed part of this cost increase, but like other major carriers, when costs remain high for an extended period, we will implement temporary surcharges to partially offset the costs.”

It is understood that more than 60% of the items on the Amazon platform come from independent sellers. These sellers must pay Amazon sales commissions and warehousing and fulfillment fees. Analysts point out that, because sellers’ profit margins are limited, this incremental cost will most likely eventually be passed on as higher product prices, paid for by end consumers. Vanisek added that the fee will be calculated based on the shipping charges Amazon collects, not on the product price, and that the fee level is “significantly lower than” the fees charged by other carriers.

This series of fare adjustment measures reflects the severe pressure currently being endured by the supply chain, and it is not an isolated case. In the aviation sector, United Airlines is the second mainstream airline to raise service fees recently after JetBlue Airways (JBLU.US), indicating the return of fuel surcharges across the entire civil aviation industry. In the express logistics sector, the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) has also announced that it will charge an 8% fuel surcharge starting April 26, and the surcharge is expected to last until the beginning of 2027.

As the nationwide average oil price jumped from $2.99 per gallon to the $4 mark within a month, businesses are trying to hedge risks through more flexible pricing mechanisms. Although certain companies such as Southwest Airlines (LUV.US) still insist on maintaining existing free strategies, given that energy prices remain high, this trend of shifting costs to customers is unlikely to reverse in the near term.