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In the first-ever meeting of its
kind to take place in Asia, Malaysia will play
host to a gathering of shippers from all over
the world who are expected to meet to discuss
wide ranging issues and challenges facing
shippers globally.
The meeting, to be hosted by the Malaysian
National Shippers Council (MNSC), which is
headed by the Deputy Trade and Industry
Minister, Ng Yip Yong, will discuss issues
relating to maritime regulatory reforms, the
contentious terminal handling charges and
surcharges imposed by shipping lines as well as
security of the transport and logistics chain.
The Global Shippers’ Forum, hosted by the
Malaysian National Shippers Council, will be
held 16-19 September 2007 in Kuala Lumpur and is
expected to be officiated by the Deputy Prime
Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Abdul Razak.
In conjunction with the Global Shippers Forum,
MNSC is also organizing the first ever World
Shippers’ Conference, that is expected to be
attended by 300 delegates from shippers bodies
throughput the world.
Participants to the meeting will include
representatives from national shippers
associations from the Asean, the Asian Shippers’
Council, European Shippers Council, the National
Industrial Transportation League (US) and the
Canadian Industrial Transportation Association.
One of the issues which the shippers are
expected to address at the Kuala Lumpur meeting
will be the changes in maritime regulations
which they claim are weighed heavily in favour
of liner shipping companies.
Shippers have voiced the concern that shipping
companies not only collectively set rates and
service conditions, but even refuse to entertain
any request from shippers to hold any discussion
even if the rates are arbitrary and
unsubstantiated and services far from
satisfactory.
The smaller shippers and the less powerful
economic regions are particularly hit. They have
nowhere to redress their grievances, no matter
how genuine the grievances are.
Shippers have also taken note that some shipping
lines, through mergers and acquisitions, are
really emerging very strong, so much so that
even large shippers will find it difficult not
to abide by the terms dictated by these lines.
The issue of the Terminal Handling Charge (THC)
which has been a bone of contention between the
shippers and the shipping lines ever since its
introduction in Asia in 1991 is another issue
that will feature prominently in the meeting in
Kuala Lumpur.
The shippers are also expected to call for
substantial changes to the system of liner
conferences, stressing on the need for reforms
that would create “true economic partnerships”
between shippers and carriers that results in
market driven environment.
In conjunction with the World Shippers’ Forum,
MNSC will also be hosting the Federation of
Asean Shippers’ Council and the Asian Shippers
Council.
Malaysia currently serves as the chairman of the
FASC with the Deputy MITI Minister as its head.
The Global Shippers Forum, a successor
organization to the Tripartite Shippers Group,
was launched in September last year in an
attempt to forge a common front among shippers
in the world to address issues and challenges
facing the shippers including as a
countervailing measure to the trend address the
increasing concentration of the shipping
industry.
GSF recognizes the need to reflect the interests
of all freight shippers regardless of geographic
origin or trade lanes.
It conveys the Forum’s continuing objective to
support policies which enhance changing
transport needs around the world where
efficiencies can be realized through competition
and a marketplace environment
As with the GSF, the Asian Shippers’ Council (ASC)
is also a new organization set up to represent
the interests of cargo owners and exporters.
ASC, which has its secretariat in Singapore, was
formed to serve as a forum for Asian shippers to
discuss issues of interest to present and
advocate an Asian view to the international
community.
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