ABSTRACT
International shipping has come under increasing scrutiny both by the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Secretariat and by the governments of many developing countries. Liner conferences are organized bodies formed by shipowners serving a particular trade and created for the purpose of limiting competition among shipowners serving that trade. The Liner Code is often spoken of in terms of its stipulations on cargo sharing; in actuality the Code treats a number of other significant aspects of shipping. Liner conferences operating out of most states have the authority to limit their membership of liner companies; they are in this sense “closed” conferences. While all shippers are concerned with freight rates, representatives of the developing world have been particularly vociferous in their denunciation of what they view as high and constantly rising freight rates. The UNCTAD Code requires that conference decisions be based upon the principle of equality of all full member lines.
