Shippers call for Asia Pacific Liner Conference Ban
ICS says consortiums are needed to deal with trade imbalances Shipper representatives called on Asia Pacific regulators to follow Europe's lead in banning liner conferences."The remaining immunities from antitrust rules hurt Europe's competitors as much as they hurt us," Nicolette van der Jagt, secretary general of the European Shippers' Council, told JOC."Shipping is international by nature, and international trade relies on it being able to flourish and respond directly to the needs of trade, not to own or collective ambitions."The plea came after the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) urged New Zealand's Productivity Commission to maintain its exemption of liner practices such as conferences and consortia agreements from the competition provisions of the New Zealand Commerce Act. The Commission is conducting an inquiry into the performance of international freight transport sector in New Zealand."ESC believes that in the European post-conference environment it is imperative that we protect the advances made in Europe by supporting shippers elsewhere in the world to remove similar block exemptions for shipping lines," van der Jagt said.John Lu, Chairman of the Asian Shippers' Council, said cooperation between lines was anathema to free trade. "They act like he cartels and they drive up the cost of transport," ...
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