Fourth Global Regulatory Summit Held at FMC

Federal Maritime Commission Chairman Michael A. Khouri and Commissioners Rebecca Dye, Daniel Maffei, and Louis Sola participated recently in a Global Regulatory Summit to meet and consult with competition authorities responsible for regulating international liner shipping in the world’s largest liner trade lanes. The European Union was represented by Director Henrik Morch and two other delegates from the Directorate General for Competition of the European Commission. The People’s Republic of China was represented by Deputy Director-General YI Jiyong of the Water Transport Bureau, Ministry of Transport and four other officials representing departments of China’s Ministry of Transport (MOT).

This was the fourth Global Regulatory Summit FMC’s Commissioners have participated in. The first was held in December 2013 and hosted by the FMC. The second meeting was held in Belgium in 2015 and the third meeting was held in China in 2017. The parties announced their intention to hold the Fifth Global Regulatory Summit in Europe in 2021. Topics covered during the consultations included market conditions and industry trends; operational and business practices of carriers; and updates by each delegation on changes to regulations and laws governing shipping.

Carl Bentzel Nominated to Serve as FMC Commissioner

On June 3, 2019, President Trump announced his intent to nominate Carl Whitney Bentzel of Maryland, to be a Commissioner of the Federal Maritime Commission, for the remainder of a five-year term expiring June 30, 2019, and an additional five-year term expiring June 30, 2024. This nomination is now under consideration in the U.S. Senate. The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation held a hearing on July 24, 2019 to consider this nomination. The Senate has not yet confirmed this nomination.

Mr. Bentzel currently provides consulting services on energy and transportation policy and projects at Bentzel Strategies LLC. Previously, he worked as a Vice President at the DCI Group LLC. Before joining the DCI Group, Mr. Bentzel served as a senior counsel on the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, as well as the House Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries, where he worked on issues related to surface and maritime transportation. Mr. Bentzel received his B.A. from St. Lawrence University, J.D. from University of Alabama School of Law, and L.L.M. in Admiralty Law from Tulane University. Mr. Bentzel is a recipient of the United States Coast Guard’s Medal for Meritorious Public Service.

Once the nomination of Mr. Bentzel is confirmed by the Senate the FMC will have a full house of five Commissioners. The Shipping Act authorizes five commissioners, with no more than three of these representing the President’s political party. Prior to Senate confirmation Mr. Bentzel cannot begin work at the Commission. Once he joins the FMC he must comply with title 46 Section 301(B) of the U.S. Code of Federal Regulations which prohibits sitting Commissioners from engaging in any other business, vocation or employment, and from owning stocks or bonds of any entity the Commission regulates.

Transpacific Eastbound Carriers File GRIs Effective August 15 and September 1, 2019

Several leading carriers serving the Trans Pacific container trades have recently updated their respective tariffs to include new General Rate Increases (GRIs) effective August 15, 2019, including American President Lines (APL), CMA CGM, COSCO, Evergreen, Hapag Lloyd, Hyundai Merchant, Ocean Network Express (ONE), and Yang Ming. See table below for GRI amounts per 40ft container; GRI amounts for all other container sizes are as per formula. The August 15th GRIs will be the sixteenth GRI of 2019 for the East Asia/USA trade lane.

NOTE 1: COSCO GRIs apply on all cargo moving under service contracts only.

Some carriers updated their tariffs to include new General Rate Increases (GRIs) effective September 1, 2019, including American President Lines (APL), CMA CGM, COSCO, Evergreen, Hapag Lloyd, Hyundai Merchant, Ocean Network Express (ONE), and Yang Ming. See table below for GRI amounts per 40ft container; GRI amounts for all other container sizes are as per formula. The September 1st GRIs will be the seventeenth GRI of 2019 for the East Asia/USA trade lane.

NOTE 1: COSCO GRIs apply on all cargo moving under service contracts only.