Shipping Conferences Anti-Competitive

BRUSSELS - Nov 10/05 - SNS -- Eliminating anti-trust exemptions for ocean liner shipping conferences will likely result in increased competition and lower average freight rates, concludes an independent study commissioned by the European Commission.

The study by Global Insight, an international consultancy with significant experience in liner shipping, the Berlin University of Technology and the Institute of Shipping Economics and Logistics in Bremen was looking at the potential impact of repealing the Block Exemption Regulation for liner shipping conferences.

The study found that repealing the current exemption for liner conferences from EC Treaty competition rules' ban on restrictive business practices is likely to lead to a decline in transport prices and will have either no impact or a positive impact on the competitiveness of European liner shipping firms.

An alternative information exchange system proposed by the European Liner Affairs Association (ELAA) should, according to the consultants, not be accepted in its current form because it could facilitate collusion between shipping firms to the detriment of customers.

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