Australia’s consumer watchdog has started to scrutinise local airlines after finding airfares have increased dramatically since early this year, with no sign of relief for the upcoming Christmas holidays.
As the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) released its latest quarterly airline competition report, the agency said it would keep a close eye on aviation companies after three main operators in the market projected significant profits in the 2022-2023 financial year.
Qantas forecasted that it would achieve a profit before tax of between $1.35 billion (US$900 million) and $1.45 billion in the first half of 2022-23 after reporting an underlying loss before tax of $1.86 billion in the previous financial year….