What kind of punishment will Congress pass to sanction Southwest Airlines which “speculated” on price of jet fuel and is now able avoid fuel surcharges?
None. Southwest didn’t speculate.
There is a difference between speculation and hedging. What SWA did is hedging, not speculation. SWA takes delivery of a commodity - in huge quantities.
Speculators neither produce, nor take delivery on, a commodity. They settle for cash no matter what side of the contract they’re on.
I'm not sure what is appropriate, but it should be harsh. It's not fair that they are paying less that everyone else.
Perhaps a public hanging?