Drewry: price fixing case will not be resolved quickly
The outcome of the European Commission’s latest accusation of price fixing against ocean carriers is far from clear, based on the information that has been circulated to date, the English analyst Drewry points out.
According to the analyst, ocean carriers will argue that they are only doing what they have always done, namely notifying customers of future price increases in good faith, which was even a statutory requirement for conference carriers under the old UNCTAD code. However, the EC can counter that since the historical practice of announcing GRIs started, the lack of financial justification for them has become more evident, suggesting that the targeted increases now being implemented are only motivated by supply and demand and so should be less ‘orchestrated’.
