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Japanese steamship line “K” Line has left the European Liner Affairs Association, according to an official with the carrier.
It marks the second major defection from the ELAA in the last year, as the association has been forced to change its focus in the wake of a European Union ban on ocean carrier conferences involving European ports. The ban, which went into effect in October, has left ELAA as predominantly an information gathering and disseminating body, rather than one that lobbied on behalf of carriers for the EU to maintain an antitrust exemption for the industry.
The association now releases monthly volume information on trades to and from Europe, albeit with a month or more delay.
“We have made the corporate decision to withdraw from ELAA as we consider the original purpose/role of this group, which was discussing maintaining block exemption to liner services, has concluded,” said Shuichi Kimura, manager of global marketing in “K” Line’s Containerships Business Group. “As such, it is "K" Line's intention to withdraw from ELAA at the end of June.”
“K” Line joins fellow Japanese liner carrier MOL in defecting from the ELAA. However, Kimura said “K” Line will continue to be a member of the Transpacific Stabilization Agreement, which MOL also departed from last year.
Rod Riseborough, ELAA's chief executive of container trade statistics, declined to comment, saying the association does not comment on the activities of specific members.
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