Australia's competition regulator to monitor domestic airfares, profits

Australia’s competition regulator will monitor domestic airfares and profits for three years, increasing scrutiny as the industry begins a slow recovery from the coronavirus pandemic and Virgin Australia Holdings seeks a buyer. The federal government said on Friday the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) will monitor prices, costs and profits, as well as provide another avenue for complaints about anti-competitive conduct. “A key matter covered will be the level of capacity the airlines are putting on each route and whether this is occurring in a way that may damage competition,” Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said. Qantas, which holds almost two thirds of the domestic aviation market, said earlier on Friday it would offer 10,000 one-way seats on low-cost arm Jetstar for A$19 to help support a tourism recovery as Australia unwinds coronavirus restrictions and state borders reopen. “We have a lot of aircraft on the ground with fixed costs attached to them, so if we can put some of them back in the air by offering special fares, it’s a positive for us, for our people, for tourism and for consumers,” Qantas CE Alan Joyce said.<br/>