TACA reconfirms first half 2006 tariff increase

TACA reconfirms first half 2006 tariff increase    The Trans-Atlantic Conference Agreement, a group of six ocean carriers, has reconfirmed 'the pending application' of the conference's 2006 tariff business plan.
   Commencing Jan. 1, trade on eastbound and westbound transatlantic routes will be subject to tariff increases of $160 per 20-foot container and $200 per 40-45-foot container for both dry van and temperature-controlled cargo.
   On April 1 for those same routes, TACA will phase in tariff increases of $240 per 20-foot container and $300 per 40- to 45-foot container.
   TACA will also increase its tariff rates on July 1, and on Oct. 1. Details of those increases 'will be announced in advance closer to the time,' the conference said in a statement.
   TACA carrier members are Atlantic Container Line, Mediterranean Shipping Co., A.P. Moller-Maersk Sealand, Nippon Yusen Kaisha Line, Orient Overseas Container Line and P&O Nedlloyd. TACA's headquarters is in Crawley, West Sussex, in the United Kingdom.