[EN-SEA] "Asian Shippers' Council" Oppose TSA "Emergency Revenue Charge"

THE Transpacific Stabilisation Agreement (TSA) is imposing an Emergency Revenue Charge (ERC) to help liners make interim revenue recovery before the next service contracts in May and will apply to shippers who have binding service contracts with TSA member lines also.

According to Asian Shippers' Council (ASC) the policy guideline, ranging from US$320 per TEU to US$505 per FEU, has received unanimous votes from all TSA members.

"What good are service contracts if shipping lines can just alter them without proper consultation with shippers?" asked ASC Convenor for Greater China, Willy Lin in an ASC statement.

Based on ASC's record, since the beginning of 2009 TSA members have imposed a string of surcharges, including a General Rate Increase, Bunker Adjustment Factor and Currency Adjustment Factor.

This has pushed the all in ocean rate for a FEU from Singapore to the US West Coast from US$1,500 in early 2009 to US$2,500 in 2010 pre ERC. If the ERC of US$400 is factored in, an all in rate for a FEU is US$2,900, added the statement.

ASC chairman John Y Lu said the move to introduce a further surcharge in the ERC underlies the TSA's monopolistic stance giving little recourse for shippers.

Lee Sun-June ASC's North East Asia Convenor agrees that the onus of this "voluntary guideline" of the ERC agreed upon by its TSA members will fall on small and medium-sized shippers rather than the major players. "It is well recognised that service contracts are legally binding contracts which shipping lines have to fulfil," he added.

The ASC will continue to lobby for an end to the TSA alongside Global Shippers Forum's near monopoly of the transpacific eastbound trade which no longer exist in Far East-Europe trade following European Union laws against shipping conferences as of October 2008.

"We want to call on Asian governments to take decisive action to remove the anti-trust immunity accorded to shipping lines. By allowing liners to continue to organise, they are jeopardising the viability of millions of shippers across the continent," said Mr Lu.

The Asian Shippers' Council covers five geographical regions of China Area, Indian subcontinent, north east Asia, Oceania and south east Asia. It consists of 20 shippers' councils in the Asian region, being those from China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Korea, Australia, Fiji, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand, and affiliate shippers' councils in Africa.

It is also the one of the main components to the Global Shippers' Forum that represents the major trading regions of the world.

Source : HKSG, 18.01.10