US Charges Chinese Shipping Firms, Executives For Pandemic Price Fixing

The logo for the U.S. Department of Justice is seen prior to a news conference at the department in Washington, on Aug. 23, 2024. AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, FileThe Department of Justice has charged four of the world’s largest shipping container manufacturers and seven former executives for allegedly orchestrating a yearslong global conspiracy to restrict production and inflate prices for standard shipping containers.The superseding indictment, originally filed Jan. 22 and unsealed May 19, accuses the Chinese companies and executives of violating Section 1 of the Sherman Antitrust Act by conspiring to limit output and fix prices for nearly all standard unrefrigerated ocean shipping containers between November 2019 and January 2024.