Support growing to end lines' exemption from anti-trust laws
The Asian Shippers’ Council (ASC) has joined the chorus of support for plans to ban shipping line conferences serving the US and hope it may pressure Asian governments to follow suit. The ASC said the US Shipping Act 2010, if passed, would outlaw rate discussion agreements and act as a catalyst for change elswhere.
John Lu, Chairman of the ASC, said: “News of Congressman James Oberstar’s proposed legislation to end the cartels is music to our ears. “For years we have asked our governments to put the necessary mechanism in place to rein the cartels in, but our pleas have fallen on deaf ears.” He added that despite the European Union outlawing shipping conferences and rate agreements in 2008, “Singapore took the position that conferences were still permitted in large swathes of the world, hence its decision not to review the exemption accorded to liner shipping agreements in the
Singapore Competition Act”.
“But the Competition Commission of Singapore could not so easily dismiss the issue if the US were to join the EU in banning cartels.” However, the ASC believed shipping lines would put up a fight and
had already been “consolidating their presence in Asia and rallying the support of governments”. The US Bill followed shipper complaints over price spikes, cancelled bookings, rolled cargo and
container shortages that have disrupted imports and exports. The Bill was introduced by Congressmen James Oberstar and Elijah Cummings last week.
More than 30 groups representing shippers, forwarders and 3PLs signed a letter to the US House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure pledging their “co-operation and support”.
Meanwhile, the 29 shipping line members of the World Shipping Council, that represent 90% of global liner vessel capacity, have urged Congress to “fully consider the affects of eliminating this
authority”.
Source: Damian Brett, IFW News, 01 Oct 2010