Price fixing

Tried booking flights for 2 passengers, first one was successful, second one price increased by R600, when I called in the agent advised prices change, so I accepted the increased price of R600, she tried to book the second flight but prices increased by R1000, I did not accept this and used another airline for the second passenger because I was advised if I had cancelled the first flight it would take 6 to 8 weeks for a refund. So we have to travel on 2 separate flights and different times, what an inconvenience :(

To make things even worse today the flight prices have been reduced to the original price after the agent told me that the prices are going up and it will never come down.

Is this a marketing strategy for clients to spend more????