Canadian port authorities are calling on the US government not to impose penalties on the country’s container ports, reported Canwest News Service.
The Federal Maritime Commission in the US decided late last year to launch a study into possible unfair practices by Ottawa for its container ports, raising fears of a damaging trade war.
Richard Lidinsky, the chairman of the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC), said he would be proposing a study on whether Canadian and Mexican ports are benefiting from unfair subsidisation, following a request for an investigation by two US senators from Washington state.
They wanted an investigation of “diversions” of US-bound, Asia-origin cargo through Canada, brought into United States via Canadian rail services.
Some of the issues to be investigated include the Harbour Maintenance Tax, which isn’t in place in Canada, as well as rail service rates and infrastructure funding. Read more here.