EU regulators investigate shipping companies over price-fixing
By Foo Yun Chee
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union regulators are investigating whether a group of container shipping companies fixed prices since 2009 for routes to and from Europe in breach of EU antitrust rules and resulting in higher prices for consumers.
The decision to launch an investigation, announced on Friday, followed raids at the companies in several EU countries more than two years ago. Firms found guilty of violating EU rules could be fined up to 10 percent of their global turnover.
The European Commission's action comes as the industry grapples with overcapacity in a faltering global economy.
The Commission said in a statement that it was concerned that the companies announced similar price increases which took effect at about the same time.
"The Commission has concerns that this practice may allow the companies to signal future price intentions to each other and may harm competition and customers by raising prices on the market for container liner shipping transport services on routes to and from Europe," the Commission said in a statement.
The EU competition authority did not name the companies in the investigation or say how many are involved. Such investigations typically take several years.
Danish shipping and oil group A.P. Moller-Maersk , whose Maersk Line unit is the world's largest container shipping line, said at the time of the Commission's 2011 raids that it was one of the targeted companies.
French privately held and world No. 3 CMA CGM and German liner Hapag-Lloyd , which is 22-percent owned by German travel and tourism group TUI AG , also confirmed at that time that Commission had raided them.
(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; editing by John O'Donnell and Jane Merriman)
