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Bangkok Airways' plan to launch new international routes from its second hub on Koh Samui has been stalled by high oil prices and the slowing global economy.

Now Thailand's largest privately owned carrier will wait to see what happens with oil prices, reports the Bangkok Post.

Flights from Samui to Kuala Lumpur, Bali, Macau and Shanghai had been planned, and the carrier had also intended to later link Samui with Trat and Hua Hin. New routes are part of the airline's plan to make Samui a fully fledged second international air hub after Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport.

Bangkok Airways has two regional routes out of the resort island: Hong Kong and Singapore, with daily services using an Airbus 319 jetliner. It also has 20 flights a day between Samui and Bangkok.