Lufthansa has submitted a non-binding offer for TAP Air Portugal, following Air France-KLM who made their own bid for the carrier with the Portuguese government on 2 April. A spokesperson confirmed the bid placement to Cirium but did not offer any further commentary. Lufthansa had been widely expected to submit an offer ahead on a 2 April deadline, with group chief executive Carsten Spohr recently describing TAP as "the perfect match for us" given its presence over the south Atlantic. Unlike IAG or Air France-KLM, Lufthansa does not have a main hub in the west of Europe, which should alleviate regulators' concerns about the impact on competition. "That's an argument for Lufthansa to have TAP," Spohr stated in March, adding that "the antitrust situation is not as bad for us as for our competitors". IAG provided a conditional bid for a stake in TAP in November, although it said that "several terms would need to be addressed” before the company proposed an investment. The Portuguese authorities are believed to be seeking a buyer for 44.9% of TAP, which would see the state retain a majority stake for an initial period. Five percent of its shares would be reserved for its employees.

Italy's ITA Airways has officially joined Star Alliance, with the carrier set to become fully connected to its global network from 1 April. "Joining Star Alliance marks a historic milestone for ITA Airways and a defining step in our growth," states chief executive Joerg Eberhart. The airline notes that Rome Fiumicino and Milan Linate will be served by 17 Star Alliance members collectively. ITA explains that its induction to the alliance has been "mentored" by Lufthansa Group via an intense integration programme over the past several months. Lufthansa Group has owned a 41% stake in the Italian carrier since January last year, with a majority held by the Italian government. Lufthansa has a June deadline to decide whether to expand its stake. Collaboration with partner airlines has been a feature of ITA's business model since its launch in 2021. This has mainly involved its part-owner, as ITA has integrated its network and operations with Lufthansa Group over the past year. However, ITA said in a 25 March statement that its performance in 2025 had been held back by "the absence of commercial support from a partner carrier on routes between Italy and the United States, the company's primary international market". It later clarified to Cirium that, though it had agreed a partnership with Star Alliance founding member United Airlines in September, "at present, our co-operation... is limited to a codeshare agreement. We are currently awaiting approval from the relevant US authorities for ATI [antitrust immunity] in relation to the A++ joint venture." With the addition of ITA, Star Alliance now spans 26 member airlines, offering more than 17,500 daily flights across 190 countries.

The price of jet fuel in Europe has returned to multi-year highs amid tight supply and a lack of available imports. Energy information provider ICIS assessed jet kerosene at the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA) import hub at $1,740 per tonne on 31 March, up from $1,595.50 a week earlier and around $650 at the start of the year. ICIS notes that jet fuel markets remain characterised by "extreme volatility" as buyers seek to secure supplies at short notice. Crack spreads, which reflect the price differential between a barrel of oil and the refined product, remain at "historically elevated" levels, adds ICIS, as the price of jet fuel is rising faster than that of crude. Meanwhile, market liquidity remains thin, as buying is "largely necessity-driven". ICIS, which like Cirium is RELX-owned, identifies some pricing softness in recent sessions, but "the durability of any pullback remains uncertain", it observes. "Overall, the market is being dictated more by immediate physical constraints, terminal congestion and shipping delays than broader crude fundamentals, keeping European jet-fuel dynamics reactive and sensitive to short-term shocks," it states. European jet-fuel markets are highly dependent on Middle Eastern exports, which is why the regional supply-demand imbalance is taking a toll on market dynamics. ICIS highlights International Energy Agency data that shows the Gulf supplied around 280,000 barrels of jet fuel to Europe per day in 2025, accounting for 60% of imports and just under a quarter of regional demand. Meanwhile, ARA jet-fuel stockpiles fell 5.3% in the week to 26 March to reach the lowest level in two years.