EC in new crackdown on price-fixing
BRUSSELS – The European Commission has continued its crackdown on alleged price-fixing among airlines.
Reports yesterday confirmed that officials swooped on the offices of several international airlines, including Lufthansa, Air France and KLM, who are suspected of price-fixing on long-haul passenger flights to Japan.
“The Commission has reason to believe that the companies concerned may have violated EC rules on restrictive business practices,” it said in a statement that followed the release of a regulatory filing by Lufthansa admitting its offices were raided.
“The European Commission is conducting an investigation in the offices of Deutsche Lufthansa AG in Frankfurt today.
“According to information from the investigation decision, the
Commission has information that passenger aviation companies including Lufthansa in Europe and in Japan may have taken part in anticompetitive price-fixing and collusive behavior in traffic between the EU and Japan”.
Lufthansa said it is cooperating with the EC to provide “all the requested informationâ€.
KLM yesterday also confirmed its offices had been searched in relation to “possible anticompetitive behaviour regarding passenger services on routes from Europe to Japan
The Commission stressed that the inspections did not necessarily mean the companies targeted were guilty.
Ian Jarrett
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