The American Chemical Distributors Association accused the World Shipping Council of the carrier\'s refusal of its booking
It is reported that a trade organization representing nearly 450 chemical distributors in the United States directly accused the carrier of refusing to order chemicals that are vital to the national security of the United States.
The National Association of Chemical Distributors (NACD) said in a letter to the Chairman of the World Shipping Council (WSC) John Butler on Wednesday that shipping companies should be asked to stop unfair business practices against chemical distributors. And stated that they are victims of the greed of shipping companies.
The World Shipping Council (WSC) represents the ship operator that controls 90% of the global container ship capacity.
NACD stated in the letter that its members are facing issues such as shipping delays, rising shipping costs, and in some cases being directly refused container bookings. Since the beginning of the epidemic, chemical distributors have been under tremendous pressure due to supply chain disruption and the greed of shipping companies.
Like shippers of agricultural products, NACD also condemns the shortage of space in the container market and the upsurge of shipping empty containers to Europe, and advocates re-enacting the US maritime law to strengthen the supervision of the time and reason for the carrier's refusal to book.
At the same time, shipping companies said that the surge in demand and the interruption of global ports and inland transportation have resulted in a shortage of ship capacity and containers, preventing them from providing services to certain shippers as they wish, and forcing them to give priority to higher-income ones. Chance.
According to an investigation by NACD, most of its members’ imported chemicals are out of stock, the delivery time is delayed by 11 days or more, and they have suffered losses due to rising shipping costs. "NACD hopes to raise our concerns to WSC in order to find an ally to help ease the tension in the chemical supply chain." NACD Chairman Eric R. Byer said in a statement.
As the chemical industry is designated by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security as one of the critical infrastructure industries in the United States, and because of the shortage of containers, the inventory of chemical products used in medical treatment is at risk, so the problem has become more urgent.
"Shipping companies ignore NACD members' concerns and put other commodities above basic chemicals. This is harming the greater interests and safety of the United States. NACD stands ready to work together with WSC to find solutions." Byer added.
The Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) said in a statement that after meeting with NACD, Federal Maritime Commissioner Carl Bentzel accepted NACD’s concerns about shipping companies. He said he is interested in expanding the scope of FMC's audit of shipping companies to understand whether chemical shipments have been treated unfairly.
Carl Bentzel said in the statement: "I am disturbed by reports that ocean carriers may refuse to provide services to shippers who import chemicals. Failure to import these goods may in turn harm U.S. manufacturers and may endanger the U.S. Plans for water purification and other strategic services and commodities that rely on international chemical transportation."
