ACCC slams port operators for ‘unavoidable tax’ driving up household costs

The ACCC has slammed Australia’s port operators for hauling in record profits while pushing soaring costs onto consumers despite having spare capacity.

Stevedores including Patrick's are under pressure from the ACCC over increased port costs

The ACCC has slammed Australia’s port operators, accusing them of hauling in record profits while pushing higher costs onto consumers and industry, leading the regulator to call for government reform of the industry.

Despite having spare capacity at ports and barely any increase in costs or productivity, the industry’s charges are surging, the competition watchdog has revealed.

ACCC Commissioner Anna Brakey warned ballooning charges will ultimately hit households in the form of higher prices on everyday goods.

“Without targeted reform, Australian businesses and households will pay the price through higher costs.”

The Commissioner said the booming profits made no sense in a market with ample unused port capacity.

“Typically, we would expect to see excess terminal capacity placing downward pressure on the stevedores’ prices and short run profits.”

“The fact that stevedores are performing better than they were prior to entry of Hutchison, a time when the industry was operating as a capacity constrained duopoly, raises serious concern about how this market is operating.”

ACCC commissioner Anna Brakey warns increased port costs will be felt by consumers. Source: Supplied.

The ACCC’s Container Stevedoring Monitoring Report 2024–25 shows prices and profits have surged for the fifth straight year, reaching historic highs across almost every measure, leading the regulator to call for.

Road Freight NSW chief executive, Simon O’Hara, joined the ACCC in slamming the charges.

“Stevedore charges have effectively become an unavoidable tax on the supply chain,” he said.

“Trucking operators have no ability to negotiate or avoid these fees, yet they continue to rise despite significant spare capacity at the ports.”

“Terminal access charges are now one of the fastest-growing cost pressures for NSW freight operators, hitting small and family-run businesses first and hardest.”

“The ACCC is right to call this a market failure — the current situation is simply not sustainable.”

Freight operators are particularly vulnerable to the increased charges, Ms Brakey said.

“These unavoidable costs land first on trucking companies, who then pass them on to importers and exporters, who have no real way to avoid or negotiate them.”

“With similar charges across terminals and lack of ability or incentives for most importers and exporters to switch stevedores, they cannot influence these costs through competition,” Brakey said.

Soaring costs have been cited as the driving force behind a wave of failures across the trucking industry, the latest being Wagga-Wagga founded Ron Crouch Transport which went into Administration this week.

Geoff Couch put his family trucking business into Administration this week as the 47 year old company struggled with increased cost pressures. Photo: Supplied

The total stevedoring price per container, measured by the ACCC through real revenue per container lift, has jumped to $423.11, the highest since monitoring began 27 years ago.

In the past year, container rates increased 5.5 per cent, and are now almost 20 per cent higher than in 2019–20.

At the same time, the industry’s operating profits have exploded, rising 130 per cent in five years to $808.6 million, which saw overall margins climbing to a record 34.8 per cent, and a return on assets soaring to 45 per cent, another highest.

The ACCC found stevedores’ profitability now outstrips major companies across the entire transport industry and is higher than most of the nation’s industrial sectors.

Ms Brakey said the booming profits made no sense in a market with ample unused port capacity.

“Typically, we would expect to see excess terminal capacity placing downward pressure on the stevedores’ prices and short run profits.”

“The fact that stevedores are performing better than they were prior to entry of Hutchison, a time when the industry was operating as a capacity constrained duopoly, raises serious concern about how this market is operating.”

The watchdog points the finger squarely at landside charges, the fees trucking companies must pay to pick up or drop off containers.

Container charges have exploded in recent years and now make up almost half the industry’s entire revenue.

In 2024–25 alone, landside charges brought in $1.15 billion, more than $642 million of that came from terminal access charges, and since 2017, stevedores have collected over $3 billion from these access fees.

Brakey said the charges had become “a major driver of profit” despite being unavoidable for transport operators, who simply pass them on to importers, exporters and eventually consumers.

Simon O'Hara, Head of Road Freight NSW joined the ACCC’s call to put Stevedoring companies under more scrutiny. Photo Jeremy Piper

“With similar charges across terminals and no real ability for most customers to switch stevedores, businesses can’t use competition to push back,” she said.

The report concluded government policy or regulatory response is required to fix what it calls clear market failures and restore competitive pressure to the supply chain.

Mr O’Hara joined the call, concluding: “This report confirms what our RFNSW members have been saying for years: landside fees are out of control.”

“We need a fair, transparent and accountable framework, including a mandatory code, to ensure port charges reflect real service delivery rather than unchecked profit.”

Industry body Ports Australia was contacted for their response on the ACCC’s report but was unable to comment.

Originally published as ACCC slams port operators for ‘unavoidable tax’ driving up household costs