The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission today issued its report to the Minister for Transport and Regional Services into an alleged breach of Part X of the Trade Practices Act 1974 by the members of the Australia to Europe Liner Association.
Part X of the Act contains a wide range of provisions controlling and regulating international liner cargo shipping.
The ACCC's investigation was in response to a complaint from the Australian Peak Shippers Association that the AELA had contravened negotiation obligations under Part X in relation to the introduction of increased origin terminal handling charges. The charges are levied by a shipping line on shippers (exporters) to recover the costs of stevedoring services provided to the shipping line by a container terminal operator.
The ACCC consulted with interested parties including the Department of Transport and Regional Services. The ACCC issued a draft report on 23 December 2005 in which it set out its draft view that the AELA had contravened one of the negotiation provisions in Part X. Submissions on the draft report were invited from interested parties.
In today's report, the ACCC says that grounds do not exist for the Minister to be satisfied that the members of the AELA contravened the negotiation provisions of Part X in relation to the increase in the charges. The ACCC reached this view taking into account additional information received in response to the draft report.
But the report urges both liners and shipper bodies to develop arrangements to manage confidential information that is necessary to Part X negotiations.
The AELA was dissolved in mid-March 2006. The ACCC has nevertheless proceeded with publishing this report to set out its reasoning and to make observations which may assist the Government in its consideration of its response to the Productivity Commission's inquiry report into Part X.