More PH truckers to slash rates

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Trucks_on_RoxasThe Confederation of Truckers Association of the Philippines (CTAP) reduced its guide rates for the transport of containerized cargoes effective this month, and the Integrated North Harbor Truckers Association (INHTA) will follow suit in May.

CTAP president Edgardo Olego, in a meeting with the Export Development Council (EDC) on April 21, announced that CTAP has issued an advisory prescribing new guiding rates for its members that are 10% lower than those issued on March 15, 2014. The 2014 rates were 50% higher than the 2011 CTAP guiding rates, as truckers last year hiked charges in response to the impact of the slow turnaround brought about by the Manila truck ban.

INHTA president Teodorico Gervacio, in a text message to PortCalls, said they will also reduce their rates by about 5% to 6% from last year’s rates, with a possible effectivity of May 15, once the board approves the plan before end of this month. INHTA members, who service shippers using the domestic North Harbor port, increased their rates in 2014 by as much as 100%.

Under the new CTAP rates that took effect April 15, the transport of a 20-foot container within Manila (Port Area, Intramuros, Binondo, Tondo, Sta. Mesa, Sta. Ana, Sampaloc, and other points) costs from P9,450 to P11,745; and a 40-footer, from P11,205 up to P13,320.

Rates for a 20-footer bound for Quezon City, Caloocan, Navotas, Malabon, Makati, Mandaluyong, San Juan, Marikina, Pasig, Pateros, Taguig, Parañaque, Las Piñas, and Muntinlupa range from P11,205 to P16,875. For 40-footers, these are between P12,420 and P18,360.

For Northern Luzon, including Bulacan, Pampanga, Bataan, Zambales, Nueva Ecija, Nueva Vizcaya, Isabela, Cagayan, Pangasinan, La Union, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, Benguet, and Tarlac, transport costs range from P17,415 (Bulacan) to P95,985 (Cagayan) per 20-footer. Transport of 40-foot units to Northern Luzon varies from P19,440 up to P103,815.

For Southern Luzon, which includes Laguna, Batangas, Quezon, Cavite, Rizal, Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, Albay, and Sorsogon,  rates are from P18,360 (Cavite) to P116,775 (Sorsogon via Andaya Highway) per 20-footer. Transport of forty-footers costs P19,980 up to P124,605.

CTAP said the rates took into consideration the current price of diesel per liter, higher toll fees, increase in the minimum wage of truck drivers, and increase in the prices of spare parts, tires, batteries, and lubricating oil.

CTAP vice president for external affairs Pepito Dino said at the EDC meeting that due to the slow turnaround during the Manila port congestion, some drivers opted to drive buses or taxicabs instead, which resulted in a shortage of truck drivers. Moreover, Dino said that despite the continuing decline in oil prices, the prices of spare parts and maintenance remained high. He added that the rental of garages in Metro Manila has increased 50% from P30,000 to P60,000 per 300 square meters.

CTAP noted that the new rates exclude haulage rates for project cargo with over-width or over-height load that requires special handling equipment; chassis rental; and bobtail or advance positioning of container.

The trucking organization noted that under the guide rates, the maximum unloading and loading time is four hours only, and demurrage charges will be collected for any excess. Fines and penalties from overweight axle and overload are also the responsibility of the customer, according to CTAP. Moreover, any increase in fuel prices beyond 30% will cause an adjustment in the new rates.

Too small

Stakeholders found the 10% decrease in CTAP’s guiding rates wanting. During a forum on port congestion organized by the Port Users Confederation last week, participants said the cut should be more since the government has stated that port congestion, the cause of the rate hike, had eased.

Stakeholders have asked that trucking rates as well as port congestion-related charges of shipping lines be brought back to pre-port congestion levels since Cabinet Secretary Jose Rene Almendras, who is also head of the Cabinet Cluster on Port Decongestion, said in early March that the operations of Manila ports have returned to normal.

Recently, EDC issued Resolution No. 02-2015 urging truckers to restore their charges to pre-port congestion levels. This resolution, signed by EDC executive committee chairman and Trade and Industry Undersecretary Ponciano Manalo, Jr., was discussed during the April 21 meeting.

CTAP claimed that rates have actually gone down and are now driven by the law of supply and demand. Also, some truckers already have contracts with importers and exporters and cannot just increase their rates at the drop of a hat.

However, CTAP said some customs brokers or freight forwarders sometimes put a mark-up on trucking rates collected from consignees. The association added that negotiating directly with truckers is cheaper since there will be no mark-up. Rey Soliman, a director of the Chamber of Customs Brokers, Inc. who also attended the EDC meeting, said this is not the practice of all customs brokers. A freight forwarder added that if they add a mark-up, this will not be as high as 20%.

Ma. Flordeliza Leong, assistant vice president of the Philippine Exporters Confederation, said they have not received any reports from members that trucking rates have gone down. She added that some exporters are actually thinking of acquiring their own trucks to serve their needs. This was also the statement of Almendras on the sidelines of the PUC forum.

As for port congestion-related surcharges, stakeholders are asking why shipping lines have increased their cost-recovery charge or container-imbalance cost, even as some have scrapped the port congestion surcharge. Almendras said that since there are many international shipping lines operating in the Philippines, consignees have the option to ship with carriers that offer cheaper and better services.

CTAP director Alberto Suansing said that though the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) is mandated to oversee rates of truckers, market forces usually dictate trucking rates.

Meanwhile, CTAP said it is asking the government to provide incentives to trucking companies in the form of lower duties and value-added tax to encourage them to import more trucks. This will help truckers re-fleet in view of the government’s plan to phase out trucks at least 15 years old. However, CTAP’s Dino noted only those who can afford to buy new units, each of which costs millions, will benefit, not small players. More than P50 billion will be needed over five years to replace the 19,000 trucks to be affected by the proposed LTFRB policy, according to the association. – Roumina Pablo