German antitrust body opposes merger between Lufthansa and Eurowings.

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The Cartel Office of Germany, an antitrust authority, has determined that a proposal by Deutsche Lufthansa, a German airline, to raise its stake in the regional carrier Eurowings to 49% would lead to weakened competition

Lufthansa is already dominant in the German market and Eurowings is considered Germany's No. 3 airline. The Cartel Office president noted his opposition to the proposal, stating that the damage to competition would outweigh any benefits according to The Associated Press. The Cartel Office indicated that Lufthansa would have no competition on 70 of its domestic routes under the merger. The carrier currently has no competition on 66 of its 86 routes.

Lufthansa and Eurowings have been given until 19 March to alter their proposal to convince the Cartel Office that competition will not be harmed.

The decision so far is likely to please Deutsche BA, a subsidiary of British Airways that competes with Lufthansa on seven routes. Deutsche BA had said that the merger would result in a 'dangerous monopolisation' of the German market.

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