= THE OEDC's International Transport Forum (ITF), an intergovernmental body, has faulted the shipowners lobby, the World Council of Shipping (WCS), for its criticism of an ITF paper dismissing the value of shipping alliances.
WSC first attacked ITF's paper, titled 'Container Shipping in Europe Data for the Evaluation of the EU Consortia Block Exemption,' saying it was 'riddled with fundamental flaws' and that it should be 'disregarded in its entirety' by European regulators, reported American Shipper.
WSC first attacked ITF's paper, titled 'Container Shipping in Europe Data for the Evaluation of the EU Consortia Block Exemption,' saying it was 'riddled with fundamental flaws' and that it should be 'disregarded in its entirety' by European regulators, reported American Shipper.
An ITF spokesman said they 'will write to the WSC in response to the criticism voiced,' but said they were 'addressing container shipping regulation in a report in a way fully consistent with ITF's mandate,' which calls for the organisation to 'foster a deeper understanding, among policymakers and wider audiences, of the role of transport as a key to economic growth and of its impact on the environmental and social dimensions of sustainability.'
He added: 'The ITF is not an interested party in the debate about container shipping alliances. Its views are grounded in data, evidence and economic research with the objective to foster efficient transport solutions that serve citizens.'
He said the ITF report was 'the product of collaboration of ITF with the European Commission. It was in exchanges with the commission that data potentially relevant for the evaluation of the consortia BER by the commission was identified.'
The WSC Council criticised the ITF's use of statistics, saying it combined data from two different sources and it is not clear how they have been combined.
EU regulators are considering whether to extend an antitrust protection called the block exemption regulation (BER ) for container shipping consortia past April 2020.
The WSC said space-sharing arrangements create many benefits for shippers: more frequent service, a wider range of service and the ability for carriers to operate larger, more efficient ships, which helps reduce costs.
He said the ITF report was 'the product of collaboration of ITF with the European Commission. It was in exchanges with the commission that data potentially relevant for the evaluation of the consortia BER by the commission was identified.'
The WSC Council criticised the ITF's use of statistics, saying it combined data from two different sources and it is not clear how they have been combined.
WORLD SHIPPING
WSC first attacked ITF's paper, titled 'Container Shipping in Europe Data for the Evaluation of the EU Consortia Block Exemption,' saying it was 'riddled with fundamental flaws' and that it should be 'disregarded in its entirety' by European regulators, reported American Shipper.
WSC first attacked ITF's paper, titled 'Container Shipping in Europe Data for the Evaluation of the EU Consortia Block Exemption,' saying it was 'riddled with fundamental flaws' and that it should be 'disregarded in its entirety' by European regulators, reported American Shipper.
An ITF spokesman said they 'will write to the WSC in response to the criticism voiced,' but said they were 'addressing container shipping regulation in a report in a way fully consistent with ITF's mandate,' which calls for the organisation to 'foster a deeper understanding, among policymakers and wider audiences, of the role of transport as a key to economic growth and of its impact on the environmental and social dimensions of sustainability.'
He added: 'The ITF is not an interested party in the debate about container shipping alliances. Its views are grounded in data, evidence and economic research with the objective to foster efficient transport solutions that serve citizens.'
He said the ITF report was 'the product of collaboration of ITF with the European Commission. It was in exchanges with the commission that data potentially relevant for the evaluation of the consortia BER by the commission was identified.'
The WSC Council criticised the ITF's use of statistics, saying it combined data from two different sources and it is not clear how they have been combined.
EU regulators are considering whether to extend an antitrust protection called the block exemption regulation (BER ) for container shipping consortia past April 2020.
The WSC said space-sharing arrangements create many benefits for shippers: more frequent service, a wider range of service and the ability for carriers to operate larger, more efficient ships, which helps reduce costs.
He said the ITF report was 'the product of collaboration of ITF with the European Commission. It was in exchanges with the commission that data potentially relevant for the evaluation of the consortia BER by the commission was identified.'
The WSC Council criticised the ITF's use of statistics, saying it combined data from two different sources and it is not clear how they have been combined.
WORLD SHIPPING