Ryanair has been fined 256 million euros (£224 million) by Italy’s competition watchdog for allegedly using an “abusive strategy” to hinder third-party travel agencies.

The regulator claimed in its ruling that the low-cost airline deliberately made it difficult for agencies to buy flights on its website, between April 2023 and at least April this year.

The Italian Competition Authority (AGCM) said: “Following a complex investigation, the authority found that Ryanair put in place an elaborate strategy affecting the ability of online and traditional travel agencies to purchase Ryanair flights on ryanair.com.

“In particular, the company’s strategy blocked, hindered or made such purchases more difficult… when combined with flights operated by other carriers and/or other tourism and insurance services.”

“These practices compromised the ability of agencies to purchase Ryanair flights and combine them with flights from other airlines and/or additional travel services, thereby reducing direct and indirect competition between agencies,” it added.

Ryanair said it would appeal the ruling and the fine, which it said was “unjustly levied”.

The Dublin-based carrier said: “Ryanair has campaigned for many years to offer consumers the lowest fares by booking directly on the ryanair.com website.

“This direct distribution model was ruled to ‘undoubtedly benefit consumers’ by the Milan Court, as recently as Jan 2024.”

Ryanair’s long-standing chief executive, Michael O’Leary, branded the ruling “legally unsound”.

He said: “This AGCM ruling is an affront to the precedent Milan court ruling, and also an affront to consumer protection and competition law.

“Ryanair has grown rapidly in Italy – and in many other markets across Europe – by always offering the lowest air fares in every single market in which we operate.

“This legally baseless AGCM Ruling, and its absurd 256 million euro fine, undermines consumer protection and competition law, and it will be overturned on appeal.”

It comes after Italy fined Ryanair 3 million euros (£2.6 million) in 2019 for its policy of charging passengers for cabin baggage, but the penalty was later overturned by an administrative court.

New Delhi: The rates of gold and silver surged by over 1 per cent to hit fresh record highs on Tuesday, driven by safe-haven demand, notably due to escalating US-Venezuela tensions. 

MCX gold February futures rose 1.2 per cent to an all‑time high of Rs 1,38,381 per 10 grams and were up 1.01 per cent as of 10.48 am.

MCX silver surged 1.7 per cent to a record high of Rs 2,16,596 per kilogram and was up 1.30 per cent as of 10.48 am. The dollar index had declined 0.20 per cent during the session, making gold cheaper in overseas currencies.

Heightened geopolitical uncertainty, notably escalating US‑Venezuela tensions, has underpinned the rally, analysts said.

The US Coast Guard this month seized a super tanker under sanctions carrying Venezuelan oil and tried to intercept two more Venezuela‑related ships over the weekend, heightening tensions, according to multiple reports.

“Safe haven bidding is featured to start a holiday‑shortened trading week, amid heightened geopolitical tensions,” Rahul Kalantri, VP Commodities, Mehta Equities Ltd, said.

Intensifying US-Venezuela tensions and the killing of a Russian army general in a bomb attack on Monday increased geopolitical risk and supported gold and silver, Kalantri said.

Both precious metals also gained after cooling-off US inflation and no bigger surprise from the Bank of Japan policy meetings last week, he added.

Gold has support at the Rs 1,35,550-1,34,710 zone, while resistance is at the Rs 1,37,650-1,38,470 levels.

Silver has support at Rs 2,11,150-2,10,280 zone while resistance is at Rs 2,13,810, 2,14,970 levels, the analyst said.

Aggressive central bank buying, expectations of US Fed rate cuts, concerns over the impact of US tariffs, geopolitical tensions, and robust inflows into gold and silver ETFs drove the gold and silver prices this year.

Domestic spot gold prices have surged 76 per cent year‑to‑date and international gold prices almost 70 per cent in 2025, on track for their strongest annual performance since 1979.

Both domestic and international prices of silver have gained about 140 per cent YTD.

New Delhi: A social media post is going viral that claims, from 1st April 2026, the Income Tax Department will have the authority to access your social media, emails, and other digital platforms to curb tax evasion.

A post is being circulated by an X handle IndianTechGuide. Fact-checking agency PIB has refuted the social media claim. PIB has stated that the claim being made in this post is misleading.

Can Income Tax Department Access Your Social Media, Emails, Other Digital Platforms?

PIB further explained, the provisions of section 247 of the Income Tax Act 2025 are strictly limited to Search and Survey operations. Unless a taxpayer is undergoing a formal search operation due to evidence of significant tax evasion, the department has no power to access their private digital spaces. 

A post by @IndianTechGuide claims that from April 1, 2026, the Income Tax Department will have the ‘authority’ to access your social media, emails, and other digital platforms to curb tax evasion.#PIBFactCheck

_The claim being made in this post is #misleading! Here’s the real_ pic.twitter.com/hIyPPcvALF
— PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) December 22, 2025

It added, the powers cannot be used for routine information gathering/processing, or even for cases under scrutiny assessment. These measures are specifically designed to target black money and large-scale evasion during search and survey, not the everyday law-abiding citizen

PIB said that the power to seize documents and evidence during search and survey operations has existed since the 1961 Act.

How to get messages fact-checked by PIB

If you get any such suspicious message, you can always know its authenticity and check if the news is for real or it is a fake news. For that, you need to send the message to https://factcheck.pib.gov.in. Alternatively you can send a WhatsApp message to +918799711259 for fact check. You can also send your message to pibfactcheck@gmail.com. The fact check information is also available on https://pib.gov.in.