Maersk Italia, Maersk Line’s Italian unit, participated in the price fixing, but was not fined because it provided the initial information that enabled the authority to expose the cartel. Hapag-Lloyd Italy’s fine was halved to $322,000 because it provided additional information about the cartel’s activities.
The cartel exerted “a significant impact on the market for maritime transport,” according to AGCM. While most of its members were based in Genoa, their fixed prices acted as a reference for transactions in other Italian ports, including Gioia Tauro, the container transshipment hub, and La Spezia.
French carrier CMA CGM attracted the biggest fine of $1.18 million followed by China’s Coscon at $965,000 and "K" Line of Japan, $575,000.
Other cartel members included APL, Yang Ming and Zim Integrated Shipping Services, and the two trade associations, Assagenti and Spediporto, which were each fined $108,000.