European airline consolidation will go on, Lufthansa CEO says

ROME (Reuters) -There is scope for further consolidation in the European airline sector, the chief executive of Germany's Lufthansa said on Monday, having just bought a 41% stake in Italy's state-owned ITA. Lufthansa paid 325 million euros ($332 million) for the ITA stake, in a deal designed to boost the carrier's presence in the lucrative southern European market. Lufthansa last week agreed to acquire a 10% stake in Latvian airline airBaltic, its latest move to expand its European presence and gain access to more planes to relieve its supply constraints.