US Department of Justice drops probe into container shipping companies

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By Gavin van Marle

27/02/2019

One of the odder stories of recent years came to a close yesterday, after leading liner shipping companies confirmed that the US Department of Justice had closed its investigation into the industry that began with an aborted Box Club meeting outside San Francisco some two years ago. Maersk, MSC and Hapag-Lloyd told reporters from American Shipper they had been informed by the DoJ that the investigation had ended “without charges or penalties”. It is not the first time the Box Club – an annual meeting for liner shipping head honchos, which rather resembles a steel boxed version of the Bilderberg Group, has suffered from accusations of secretive behaviour; something that always enervates law enforcement officials.

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Topics

Antitrust Investigations The Box Club British International Freight Association Competition and Markets Authority Consortia Block Exemption Regulation Rebuilding the UK

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