Liner conference exemption

The liner conference exemption was the competition-law block exemption that let liner shipping conferences fix prices and regulate capacity. In the European Union it ran under Council Regulation (EEC) 4056/86 until Regulation 1419/2006 repealed it with effect from 18 October 2008, after which carriers serving EU ports had to stop conference price-fixing under Article 81 (now Article 101 TFEU). A narrower consortia block exemption survives under Regulation 906/2009 for operational vessel-sharing cooperation, capped at a 30% market share, but joint rate-setting no longer qualifies. The repeal ended the conference system on EU trades and pushed carriers toward individual service contracts and operational alliances.