'Outrageous' box lines 'need to be aware their day is coming', says US

© Benjamin Vess

Yesterday, president Biden tweeted: “One of the reasons prices have gone up is because a handful of companies who control the market have raised shipping prices by as much as 1,000%. It’s outrageous — and I’m calling on Congress to crack down on them.” The first shot has been fired, and the language is strengthening. A spokesperson for Senator Klobuchar, who is working on a bill, added: “The ocean shipping companies need to be aware that their day is coming, that their ability to manipulate the market – to purposefully, for their own economic benefit, for their profitability, to really screw American exporters – is over, and that I’m not backing away from this issue.”

This insightful article in The Intercept explains what is being considered by US lawmakers to stem the powers of the box lines, which will be voted on next week. Well worth a read.