Australia's Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has turned down a proposed alliance between Air New Zealand (ANZ) and Qantas.
Although New Zealand's Commerce Commission has not made its final ruling on the alliance - this is expected shortly - the deal cannot proceed without approval from the competition agencies in both countries.
The ACCC concluded, as it had in a draft decision in April, that the anti-competitive effects of the NZ$550 million ($324 million) alliance outweighed its benefits. As proposed, Qantas would take a 22.5% stake in ANZ, with the carriers forming a joint operating committee to co-ordinate fares, routes, and capacity in all the markets where they now compete.
With the airlines carrying 91% of the Australia-New Zealand traffic and almost two-thirds of the non-stop Australia-USA traffic, the ACCC concluded that the plan was "highly anti-competitive". The ACCC rejected claims that new trans-Tasman flights launched or planned by Emirates and Virgin Blue were enough to offset these effects.
Source: Airline Business
