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The U.S. Justice Department and the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) announced actions Monday to reaffirm and strengthen their commitment to jointly enforce competition laws to promote fair competition in the container shipping industry as soaring shipping costs add to inflationary pressures.

President Biden is even expected to discuss container shipping issues at Tuesday’s State of the Union address.

The announcement comes less than a year after the FMC and DOJ formalized their working relationship by entering into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in July 2021. The MOU establishes an initial framework for partnership between the FMC and the DOJ’s Antitrust Division that “enhances cooperation in the enforcement of antitrust and competition laws, including the Shipping Act, including by facilitating information exchange between and among attorneys, economists and technical experts,” which was issued in response to objectives in President Biden’s Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy, issued earlier that sam

Building on the earlier MOU, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland and FMC Chairman Daniel B. Maffei have now announced new steps the two agencies will take to strengthen the partnership.

Going forward, the Justice Department will provide the FMC with the support of attorneys and economists from the Antitrust Division for enforcement of violations of the Shipping Act and related laws, while the FMC will provide the Antitrust Division with support and maritime industry expertise for Sherman Act and Clayton Act enforcement actions, the two agencies said in a press release.

“The Justice Department will continue to aggressively enforce our antitrust laws – no matter the industry, no matter the company, and no matter the individual,” said Attorney General Garland. “Competition in the maritime industry is integral to lowering prices, improving quality of service, and strengthening supply chain resilience. Expanding joint enforcement partnerships like the partnership between the FMC and DOJ is one of our most powerful tools for promoting competition. Lawbreakers should know that the Justice Department will provide the Federal Maritime Commission all necessary litigation support as it pursues its mission of promoting competition in ocean shipping.”

“The Attorney General and I share both the priority of a competitive marketplace and a commitment to pursue enforcement actions when necessary,” said Chairman Maffei. “Our agencies have a history of cooperating to the benefit of the American consumer and this new support will help ensure that the working relationship will help both government entities in our shared goal of fair competition.”