Australian giant Coles misled shoppers with fake discounts, court rules
Australia's federal court has ruled that Coles, one of the country's largest supermarket chains, misled shoppers by raising prices before discounting them. The retailer now faces a substantial fine.
Australia's federal court, hearing a case brought by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), found that Coles had raised prices on a wide range of everyday consumer goods before marketing them as "on special". The ruling lands at a peak in the country's cost-of-living debate.
The court described the retail giant's pricing strategy as misleading commercial conduct. The ACCC says the penalty could run into hundreds of millions of dollars. Coles said it would appeal part of the ruling but would not let customer trust be damaged.
Rival Woolworths faces similar claims in a separate case. Unions and consumer groups are pushing the government to introduce new pricing transparency rules for the supermarket sector. The Australian government plans to bring fresh retail competition reforms to parliament this spring.
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