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The US Customs proposal for full
manifest of US-bound cargoes 24
hours before loading has raised
worldwide concern over the conduct
of international trade and fears
have been expressed chaos in the
maritime trade if US proceeds with
its unilateral move.
In a detailed response to US
government, the World Shipping
Council urged the government to
delay for 12 months.
The European Union has also
expressed "serious concerns" about
US proposals to tighten vessel
manifest declarations at foreign
ports, putting further political
pressure on Washington to delay
implementation.
The Commission said the changes will
"seriously disrupt EU transport
operations without necessarily
giving the US the security assurance
it seeks".
The World Shipping Council said any
new requirement that cargo manifests
be provided 24 hours before US-bound
containers are loaded in a foreign
port and the initiative would be
extremely complex and could have far
reaching consequences to
international trade.
The Council warned that failure to
address its implications fully in
advance could bring chaos to
international maritime trade
Shipping lines said the changed
ruling could potentially mean a
setback in the supply chain, if not
attended appropriately.
Most shipping lines would need at
least a 12 hours before the proposed
customs deadline for shipper
information, to be properly
processed in time for the 24 hour
deadline.
Lines in Port Klang say they often
accept cargoes at the terminal up to
12 hours before the ship sails.
In other ports special "late gates"
come in six to eight hours before
sailing.
An immediate impact would also be on
the port terminal operators as boxes
would tend sit in the yards for
longer, they would need at least
more space and put a very big strain
on equipment turn time.
Shippers, who are talking about
speed to market, would ultimately
bear the cost of the short-fall as
they now have to consider how
security is going to impact their
supply chain.
The WSC described the proposal as
"the single most substantial
proposed change to how America's
international maritime commerce
would be conducted since September
11.
Its ramifications will affect every
shipper, every importer, every port,
ever marine terminal operator, every
transport intermediary, every bank
financing America's international
trade and ever maritime carrier
involved in transporting goods by
sea to the US.
The various regulatory actions
initiated by US have a significant
economic impact and it would
increase carrier and shipping costs
and it will require trade processes
to change significantly, the Council
added.
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