Fourth Guilty Plea in Air Cargo Price-Fixing Conspiracy

OTTAWA, ONTARIO, Jul 07 (MARKET WIRE) --
The Competition Bureau announced today that international air carrier
Qantas Airways Limited has pleaded guilty to participating in an air
cargo cartel affecting Canada.

Qantas admitted that its Freight Division fixed surcharges on air cargo
exported on certain routes from Canada between May 2002 and February
2006. During most or all of this period, Qantas Freight trucked cargo
from Canada to the United States for onward shipment to Australia and
other destinations.

"Prohibiting conspiracies is at the core of competition enforcement and
is the Bureau's top priority," said Melanie L. Aitken, Interim
Commissioner of Competition. "Conspiracies to fix prices are a serious
criminal offence that harm everyone but the perpetrators who cheat the
system."

Qantas is the fourth air cargo carrier to be convicted in the Bureau's
conspiracy investigation. For its participation, Qantas has been fined
$155,000. The Bureau's investigation into the alleged conduct of other
air cargo carriers continues.

On June 26, 2009, Societe Air France (Air France), Koninklijke Luchtvaart
Maatschappij N.V. (KLM) and Martinair Holland N.V. (Martinair) pleaded
guilty to fixing air cargo surcharges for shipments on certain routes
from Canada. The companies were fined a combined total of $10 million.

Under the Competition Act, any agreement between competitors to fix
prices that result in an undue lessening of competition in Canada is a
criminal offence. Current available penalties for price-fixing include
fines of up to $10 million per count, imprisonment to a maximum term of
five years, or a combination of both.

The Competition Bureau is an independent agency that contributes to the
prosperity of Canadians by protecting and promoting competitive markets
and enabling informed consumer choice.

Contacts:
For media enquiries, please contact:
Alexa Thorp
Communications Advisor
Public Affairs Branch
819-953-9760

For general enquiries, please contact:
Information Centre
Competition Bureau
819-997-4282
Toll free: 1-800-348-5358
TTY(hearing impaired): 1-800-642-3844

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