ACCC levies criminal cartel charges against “K” Line

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s case against Japanese ocean carrier “K” Line stems from alleged cartel behavior surrounding the shipping of automobiles to Australia between July 2009 and September 2012.    The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has filed criminal charges against Japanese ocean carrier “K” Line in relation to alleged cartel behavior, ACCC said in a statement.
   The case against “K” Line, which went before the Downing Centre Local Court in Sydney today, stems from conduct surrounding the international shipping of automobiles to Australia between July 2009 and September 2012.
   ACCC noted the charges against “K” Line are the second instance of criminal charges being brought against a company under the criminal cartel provisions of the country’s Competition and Consumer Act 2010.
   Fellow Japanese carrier NYK Line, which recently announced it would form a joint container shipping operation with “K” Line and compatriot MOL, pled guilty to similar charges from the Australian competition watchdog in July.
   ACCC said its investigation into other alleged cartel participants is ongoing.
   Here in the United States, ocean carrier Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics (WWL) in July agreed to plead guilty to a one-count felony charge filed by the Department of Justice and pay a $98.9 million criminal fine related price fixing on international roll-on/roll-off (ro-ro) shipments to and from the Port of Baltimore and other locations in the U.S. WWL was the fourth company in this investigation to plead guilty in the investigation, with the other carriers including “K” Line, NYK and Chile’s CSAV.