Escalating sea fares have driven local
import-export firms into stormy losses.
Foreign
shipping firms colluding with each other to hike fares from $700 to 2,000 per
container recently has put importers and exporters into a pickle, particularly
food and agricultural exporters.
“Big
firms usually sign longer-term contracts with shipping firms coinciding with
the time they deliver goods to their partners, so recent fare hike did not hurt
their profits,” said Nguyen Trong Quy, a Uni Global Logistics representative.
Uni Global Logistics is one of best sea freight forwarders in Vietnam with good
relationships with international carriers like Kline, MOL, Cosco and MAERSK.
With a
dominant market share, foreign shipping firms are getting the upper hand in the
sea transport market.
In this
situation, the Ministry of Industry and Trade has joined hands with the
Ministry of Transport and Vietnam Shipowners Association (VNSC) to discuss fee
revision negotiations with foreign shipping firms.
“This
is extremely hard since foreign shipping firms are operating in Vietnam mainly
via their agents, final decisions, therefore, depend on ship owners,” said
VNSC’s general secretary Phan Thong.
Uni
Global legal expert Do Hoang Vinh Du said it was unlikely foreign shipping
firms would pull down shipping rates.
“The
best cure in current context is local firms teaming up to create strength in
negotiations. Besides, it is important to develop a powerful local ship fleet
to compete with foreign players,” said Du.
Phan
Thanh Quang, a Japan-backed Sagawa Express Vietnam representative, said fare
hikes would affect import-export firms’ business plans.
Quang
argued Vietnam mostly exported raw agricultural, forest and fisheries products
with low added value and high transport fares would drive up their costs
significantly, sometimes equal to product actual value.
“If we
invest in strong ships running to some key import export markets, we can still
hold the initiative with shipping fares, from there breaking the current
monopoly of foreign shipping firms, which was evidenced in their recent fare
hikes,” said Quang.
Dinh
Bac | vir.com.vn
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