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Manila a step closer to changing cabotage laws
Manila: The Philippines has taken a step further to changing its cabotage laws.
Three committees in congress yesterday voted in favour of measures that will liberalise the entry of foreign vessels between ports in the country.
The House of Representatives has now adopted and approved the Senate version of a bill allowing foreign vessels to transport and co-load foreign cargoes for domestic transhipment.
The bill is likely to be enacted when congress resumes from its spring break at the beginning of May.
“Various studies showed that the high cost of domestic shipping services is attributed to the lack of meaningful competition in the industry,” Las Pinas City representative, Mark Villar commented yesterday.