Shipping firms take flak for ‘overcharging’
After taking notice of exorbitant and unjust shipping charges being paid by the business community, Karachi Port Trust (KPT) Chairman Syed Syedain Raza Zaidi has hit out at shipping companies for “overcharging” traders without any justification.
“KPT will go tough against the high-handedness of shipping companies. Hence, they should submit details of their registration, licence, relevant laws or any agreement within 10 days, which authorise them to collect excessively high charges,” he said.
Representatives of almost all shipping companies failed to defend their position and came up with varying excuses during a recent meeting held at the KPT office, attended by a delegation of the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), headed by KCCI President Iftikhar Ahmed Sheikh, according to a statement issued by the KCCI on Wednesday.
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The KPT chairman, while seeking details of any agreement between shipping firms and the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on remitting dollars outside of Pakistan, said that it seemed that shipping companies were acting against the interest of Pakistan by remitting billions of dollars outside of the country, which required special attention.
“Who has given permission to demand such hefty freight charges, rentals and other fee,” he asked after reviewing all evidence shared by the KCCI president, but no satisfactory response was received from the shipping lines.
The KCCI president appealed to the government to establish an autonomous regulatory body so that all activities of shipping companies could be strictly monitored.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 18th, 2024.
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