SCMAP’s next General Membership Meeting will tackle the issue of shipping costs and its impact on supply chain competitiveness, in light of recent developments looking at whether these costs are adversely affecting businesses in the country.

The GMM will be held on 17 August, Friday, from 1pm to 5pm at the Columbus Room of the Discovery Suites Manila, ADB Avenue, Ortigas Center, Pasig City.

Confirmed to speak at the event is Michael Kurt Raeuber, chief executive officer of Royal Cargo and the co-author, with Dr. Henry Basilio, of a recent study looking at avoidable costs in international shipping. In response to this study, the Department of Trade and Industry has sent a letter to the Philippine Competition Commission requesting for a review of these rates.

Atty. Pete Aguilar, the executive director of the Philippine Interisland Shipping Association, will also take part to provide the perspective of the shipping lines.

We have also invited representatives from the Bureau of Customs, in light of the agency’s recent pronouncements that they are empowered by the new Customs Modernization and Tariffs Act to accredit and regulate shipping lines, as well as from the DTI and PCC. We will confirm these details in the coming days.

Registration is now open; click here to sign up. Attendance is free for one representative per SCMAP member company. Additional representatives will be charged PHP 900, while non-members will be charged PHP 1,000. Those who register from 16 August onwards, as well as walk-in participants, will be charged PHP 1,100. Sponsorship opportunities are also available; click here for more information.