Part X of the Trade Practices Act 1974
Part X of the Trade Practices Act 1974 regulates Australia's international liner cargo shipping services.
Liner cargo ships are those which regularly sail to predetermined and publicly advertised schedules between advertised ports of call.
Part X allows liner shipping operators to collaborate as "conferences" by providing limited conditional exemptions from some provisions of the Trade Practices Act.
The main objective of Part X is to ensure that exporters have access to liner cargo shipping services of adequate frequency capacity and reliability at freight rates which are internationally competitive. Since amendments made in 2000 importers have also been covered by Part X but to a more limited extent than exporters.
Part X provides that the parties to a conference agreement may apply to the Registrar of Liner Shipping for its registration upon which certain conditional exemptions from sections of Part IV (Restrictive Trade Practices) of the Act are granted.
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