US, EU, China Maritime Reps Meet in Brussels

Representatives from the maritime regulatory authorities of the European Union, the People’s Republic of China and the United States met today in Brussels to discuss antitrust and regulatory issues in maritime transport, confirming a renewed intention to cooperate on these matters.

Hosted by the European Commission's Directorate-General for Competition, this was the second official meeting between the three authorities, following the first maritime regulatory summit that took place in Washington in December 2013.

The discussions focused on the global trend towards increased cooperation in the liner shipping market, as well as on regulatory and policy issues related to ports. With the continued growth in scope of carriers' cooperation, the authorities considered that monitoring of the sector warrants ever closer contact and better communication between competition and regulatory authorities. 

Delegates also discussed respective enforcement activities and highlighted each authority's priority issues such as port congestion.

The summit concluded with the following joint statement by the European Commission, the Federal Maritime Commission and the Chinese Ministry of Transport: "Today's exchanges have been a valuable opportunity to foster cooperation between our three authorities. We have identified areas of common importance and we look forward to continuing our constructive dialogue."