The Federal Maritime Commission is investigating the surcharge practices of eight ocean carriers after receiving industry complaints that the carriers have “improperly” imposed fees, the commission said Aug. 4. The carriers -- CMA CGM, Hapag-Lloyd, HMM, Matson, MSC, OOCL, SM Line and Zim -- have until Aug. 13 to respond to questions by the FMC’s Bureau of Enforcement and to “provide details that confirm any surcharges were instituted properly and in accordance with legal and regulatory obligations.”

Export Compliance Daily is providing readers with the top stories for July 26-30 in case you missed them. You can find any article by searching the title or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.

The Federal Maritime Commission this week issued a series of long-awaited recommendations to address issues in the international freight delivery system that have been exacerbated over the past year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The recommendations, which resulted from Commissioner Rebecca Dye’s fact-finding mission that began in March 2020, aim to minimize barriers to Shipping Act enforcement and better allow the FMC to “facilitate prompt and fair dispute resolution,” Dye said July 28.

The Federal Maritime Commission will audit ocean carriers’ compliance with the FMC’s rule on detention and demurrage (see 2009140045 and 2011170041) in a bid to stop carriers from imposing unreasonable fees. The newly established Vessel-Operating Common Carrier Audit Program, which includes a dedicated audit team, will conduct the audits, the FMC said July 20. The program will “analyze” the top nine carriers by market share for compliance with the FMC’s rule and “clarify any questions or ambiguities.”

Export Compliance Daily is providing readers with the top stories for July 12-16 in case you missed them. You can find any article by searching the title or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.

The Justice Department and Federal Maritime Commission signed the first-ever memorandum of understanding between the two agencies to foster better cooperation on enforcement and oversight of competition issues in the ocean shipping industry, the agencies said July 12. The MOU creates a “framework” for the two agencies to discuss “enforcement and regulatory matters” involving unreasonable carrier practices, an increase in large carrier alliances and other practices that are hurting U.S. importers and exporters (see 2102170060). Under the MOU, which was encouraged by President Joe Biden’s executive order last week (see 2107090056), officials from the FMC and the Justice Department’s antitrust division will “confer” at least once annually, according to the MOU.

President Joe Biden signed an executive order July 9 that calls for the Federal Maritime Commission to "consider further rulemaking to improve detention and demurrage practices and enforcement of related Shipping Act prohibitions." The FMC should also "vigorously enforce the prohibition of unjust and unreasonable practices in the context of detention and demurrage" and request recommendations on the subject from the National Shipper Advisory Committee. The EO also suggests that the U.S. Department of Agriculture "consider initiating a rulemaking to define the conditions under which the labeling of meat products can bear voluntary statements indicating that the product is of United States origin, such as 'Product of USA.'” The EO addresses a wide range of issues meant to improve and promote competition in the U.S. economy, the White House said in a fact sheet.

President Joe Biden plans to issue a wide-ranging executive order this week that will address anti-competitive practices, including those affecting traders in the ocean and rail shipping industries, The Wall Street Journal reported July 8. Although White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said the order will address broad wage and labor issues, it will also call on the Federal Maritime Commission to help traders overcome challenges that have impeded the flow of goods for months, the report said.

Large ocean carriers are continuing to use their influence to cause “record high freight rates” for American shipping companies, the Florida Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association said in a letter to the Federal Maritime Commission this month. The association also said that carriers are “frequently” gathering customer information “through their [ocean transportation intermediary] client and then engage in direct competition,” which violates the Shipping Act. “The negative economic impact is real for both OTIs and shippers alike,” the FCBFA said.

Members of Congress told the Federal Maritime Commission that they are hearing again and again about exporters being denied the opportunity to send their goods across the water, either directly, or with last-minute cancellations or unreasonable expectations on time to load, and so they asked why the FMC cannot solve these problems.