Are B.C. Ports Luring Away U.S. Cargo Business?

Vancouver port | BCBusiness
A report from an American agency accuses Canada of using underhanded tactics to divert lucrative cargo business to B.C. ports.

The U.S. Federal Maritime Commission is releasing a report reprimanding Vancouver’s ports for taking lucrative business from nearby U.S. ports.

Vancouver’s ports are in deep with a federal agency just across the border.
 
The Federal Maritime Commission is taking serious issue with Vancouver’s ports to the point of publicly chastising them in a Congressional report. The commission has compiled a report that’s expected to chide Canada’s West Coast ports for deliberately diverting cargo business from nearby U.S. ports in Washington state.
 
Congress commissioned the agency to address concerns from two Washington senators last year who made the original allegations back in 2011. The members of Congress said the government subsidized cargo ships if they chose to port in B.C., particularly in Prince Rupert, rather than competing ports just down the coast.
 
After collecting 75 responses from experts on both sides of the border, the majority of respondents supposedly refuted the claims and didn’t believe Canada was doing anything nefarious.
 
Obviously Canadian stakeholders are less than happy about the allegations or the critical report. The jab at Canada’s West Coast ports would create tension between our countries, which will only compound as the U.S. draws closer to its presidential election in November.