June 2, 2006 Volume 10, Number 6 Oakland, California

SIGNALS™ provides detailed information on the regulations and activities of the US Federal Maritime Commission (FMC), and related developments in the ocean freight industry. For past issues, please consult our index.

FMC Order of Investigation and Hearing on Possible Ship Act Violations (Docket 06-06)

The FMC has opened a formal investigation into possible violations of the Shipping Act by three NVOCCs who are alleged to have handled cargo for unlicensed ocean transportation intermediaries (OTIs). The NVOCCs named in Docket 06-06 are EuroUSA Shipping, Inc. of Jessup, Maryland, Tober Group, Inc. of Brooklyn, New York and Container Innovations, Inc. of Kearny, New Jersey. According to Docket 06-06, EuroUSA Shipping and its predecessor, Euroamerica Group, Inc., knowingly and willfully accepted cargo from or transported cargo for several OTIs that did not have FMC tariffs and bonds. Tober Group and Container Innovations are alleged to have done likewise. Tober Group is also cited in Docket 06-06 for failure to file accurate rates and surcharges in its tariff, in violation of Section 10(b)(2)(a) which states that "no common carrier may provide service in the liner trade that is not in accordance with the rates and charges contained in a published tariff."

Section 10(b)(11) of the Shipping Act prohibits any common carrier from knowingly and willfully accepting cargo from or transporting cargo for the account of an OTI that does not have an FMC tariff and bond. The FMC maintains a listing of all bonded and tariffed NVOCCs at www.fmc.gov. Carriers can also require their NVOCC clients to provide them with copies of tariff title pages and bonds in order to verify their FMC status. The Shipping Act also authorizes the FMC to impose penalties of up to US$ 30,000 for each violation knowingly and willfully committed. This investigation and hearings are on going; the initial decision by the FMC's Administrative Law Judge is expected by May 11, 2007.

WTSA Lines Increase Bunker, CAF and Inland Fuel Surcharges

The Westbound Transpacific Stabilization Agreement (WTSA), whose member lines serve the US export trade from the USA to East Asia, announced increases to Bunker Adjustment Factors (BAF) and Inland Fuel Surcharges (IFC) for the third month in a row. Currency Adjustment Factors (CAF) for some destinations will also increase on July 1. Details of the BAF are as follows:

	Bunker (BAF) May 1 - May 31, 2006	Effective July 1 thru 31, 2006
	US$ 508 per 20' container	US$ 544 per 20' container
	US$ 635 per 40'/45' container	US$ 680 per 40'/45' container
	US$ 32 per WM	US$ 34 per WM

Inland Fuel Charges (IFC) will increase effective July 1, 2006 from US$ 206 to US$ 227 per container for rail and intermodal rail/truck shipments, and from US$ 60 to US$ 66 per container for local/regional truck shipments. The Currency Adjustment Factors (CAF) will increase on July 1, 2006 for shipments to Japan from 42% to 43%, to Taiwan from 4% to 5%, and to Singapore from 10% to 11%. The CAF does not apply to any other destinations served by WTSA.

The 11 member carriers of WTSA are American President Lines, China Shipping Container Lines, COSCO Container Lines, Evergreen Marine Corp., Hanjin Shipping, Hapag-Lloyd Container Line, Hyundai Merchant Marine, "K" Line, NYK Line, OOCL and Yang Ming Marine. For more information visit www.wtsacarriers.org.

Peak Season Surcharges: Asia/USA Trade Lane Tariffs

Many ocean carriers and NVOCCs serving the Asia/USA trade lane have recently filed Peak Season Surcharges (PSS) in their FMC tariffs. These will be effective June 15, 2006 thru Nov 30, 2006. Most carriers have filed the following PSS levels in their FMC tariffs; however, some have filed higher PSS levels for all water service to the US East Coast.

	Peak Season Surcharge 2006 (PSS) USA/Asia Trade Lane
	Effective: June 15, 2006 thru November 30, 2006, except as noted
	From: Asia Origin ports / To: USA Destinations
	FCL Cargo: $300/20', $400/40', $450/40HC' - except PSS for all water service to US East Coast may be higher
	LCL Cargo: $ 8/revenue ton (W/M) - except some carriers have filed $8/M and $16/W, or otherwise

In order to comply with FMC regulations, new or increased surcharge rules must be filed in ocean carrier and NVOCC tariffs 30 days prior to their effective dates. Any extension of a PSS rule beyond its published expiry date or an increase must also be filed 30 days in advance.

TSA Carriers Increase Bunker, CAF and Inland Fuel Surcharge

The carrier members of the Transpacific Stabilization Agreement (TSA), FMC Agreement No. 011223, serving the East Asia/USA trade lane have amended their FMC tariffs to provide for increases to Bunker Adjustment Factors (BAF) and Inland Fuel Charges (IFC), for the third month in a row. Details of the BAF are as follows:

	Effective June 1 thru June 30, 2006	Effective July 1 thru July 31, 2006
	US$ 475 per 20ft container	US$ 510 per 20ft container
	US$ 635 per 40ft container	US$ 680 per 40ft container
	US$ 715 per 40ft hi-cube container	US$ 765 per 40ft hi-cube container
	US$ 805 per 45ft container	US$ 860 per 45ft container
	US$ 14 per WM	US$ 15 per WM

The Currency Adjustment Factor (CAF) for shipments from Japan will increase from 3% to 4% effective July 1. The Inland Fuel Charge (IFC) for the month of June 2006 will be US$ 206 per container for mini-land bridge (MLB) and inland point intermodal (IPI) shipments moving via rail, and US$ 60 per container for local and regional truck transport to "Group 4" points in California, Oregon and Washington, and for East Coast local store-door truck moves. TSA also announced a further increase to its IFC effective July 1, 2006 of US$ 227 per container for MLB and IPI moving via rail, and US$ 66 per container to "Group 4" points, and for East Coast local store-door truck moves. TSA member carriers are American President Lines, COSCO Container Lines Ltd., Evergreen Marine Corp., Hanjin Shipping, Hapag-Lloyd Container Line, Hyundai Merchant Marine, "K" Line, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, NYK Line, OOCL and Yang Ming Marine. Visit www.tsacarriers.org for additional information.

TACA Conference Increases Bunker Surcharge and Panama Canal Fee

The Trans-Atlantic Conference Agreement (TACA), whose member carriers serve the trade between the USA and North Europe, United Kingdom and Ireland, Scandinavia and Baltic Ports, announced an increase to its bunker surcharge effective June 16, 2006, and increase to its Panama Canal Transit Fee effective June 10, 2006. The Currency Adjustment Factor (CAF) will remain at 6 percent. Bunker Adjustment Factors (BAF) will increase to the following levels: to/from Atlantic/Gulf Coast Ports, US$ 467/20ft, US$ 933/40/45ft and US$ 47/WM; to/from Pacific Coast Ports, US$ 700/20ft, US$ 1400/40/45ft and US$ 70/WM. The Panama Canal Transit Fee will increase from US$ 165 to US$ 192 per container. TACA members are Atlantic Container Line, Maersk Line, ]Mediterranean Shipping Co., NYK Line and OOCL. Revisions to surcharges are published in TACA's relevant FMC tariffs, and are shown at its website: www.tacaconf.com.