France fines parcel firms €672m over price fixing

France’s competition watchdog has fined parcel delivery services, including units of Deutsche Post’s DHL, FedEx, and TNT Express, a combined €672.3m for colluding to increase fees.

Geodis, owned by French railway company SNCF, received the largest single penalty of €196.1m, while La Poste’s Chronopost was fined €99.2m and DHL’s French unit must pay €81.2m, France’s Autorité de la Concurrence said .

The French competition authority said 20 companies and an industry group co-ordinated annual rate increases from 2004 and 2010 and 15 of the companies also colluded on a fuel surcharge from 2004 to 2006.