The Freight & Trade Alliance has warned Treasury that more than $1 billion in annual port fees charged to importers and exporters are “contributing to inflationary pressures across our economy”.

New charges and higher fees are scheduled to take effect later this month, a move the FTA says will further Australia’s inflationary pressures.

“Transport companies must pay rapidly increasing incontestable fees or are denied access to pick up or return sea freight containers,” said FTA director Paul Zalai.

“If the federal government is serious about addressing supply chain costs they will adopt the Productivity Commission’s well-considered recommendations. Now is the time for the government to show true leadership.”

The Productivity Commission’s report on the country’s maritime logistics was released in January, and recommended standardised regulations on port fees, enforceable by the ACCC.

Consulting group NineSquared tracks port charges. It estimates that $1.3 billion was spent on fees in the 2021-22 financial year, up from $1.03 billion a year earlier.

The world’s largest shipping company, Danish giant Maersk, saw its ocean earnings down by 65 per cent for the first three months of 2023.