Brazilian antitrust regulators could suspend Gol Linhas Aereas' (GOLL4.SA)(GOL.N) purchase of rival airline Webjet, citing potential harm to competition in the industry, local newspaper Valor Economico said on Wednesday. Cade, as the agency is known, could better assess the real implications of the deal if it is suspended, Valor said, without disclosing how it obtained the information. Gol and Webjet have yet to surrender key information on the deal to civil aviation and antitrust regulators, the paper said. The body opposes Gol's plan to eliminate the Webjet brand, and is growing more concerned that the civil aviation industry is slowly turning into an oligopoly -- where a few companies dominate supply and exert pricing power in a way that could threaten competition, Valor reported. A spokesman for Gol in Sao Paulo did not answer telephone calls seeking a comment. A Brasilia-based spokesman for Cade did not comment on the Valor story.
Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes S.A. (GoL) is a low-cost, low-fare airline in the world providing service on routes connecting all of Brazil?s cities and from Brazil to cities in South America and select touristic destinations in the Caribbean. Shares of GOL remained unchanged at $11.74. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $10.87 and as high as $18.66. On average, 1192350 shares of GOL exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 0.
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