The United States has unsealed a sweeping criminal case accusing seven Chinese executives and four of the world’s largest shipping container manufacturers of running a coordinated scheme to restrict supply and inflate prices during the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the alleged cartel controlled companies responsible for producing around 95% of the world’s dry shipping containers and engaged in anti-competitive behavior from as early as November 2019 through at least January 2024.
Prosecutors allege that the firms worked together to limit production capacity by restricting operating hours, installing surveillance systems to enforce output caps, and agreeing not to build new manufacturing facilities. These measures, officials say, tightened global supply at a time when demand for shipping surged, contributing to severe bottlenecks across international trade. The Justice Department claims the coordinated actions allowed the companies to roughly double container prices while increasing profits by as much as 100 times during the pandemic-era supply chain crisis.
The indictment, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California and unsealed this week, names executives from Singamas Container Holdings, China International Marine Containers Group, Shanghai Universal Logistics Equipment—also known as Dong Fang International Containers—and CXIC Group Containers. One executive has already been arrested in France and is awaiting extradition, while six others remain at large, including senior chairmen, CEOs, and general managers across the accused firms.
U.S. officials said the alleged conduct affected around $35 billion in global commerce and had a direct impact on consumers worldwide by raising shipping costs and delaying essential goods. The case comes shortly after a closely watched meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, a summit that signaled tentative diplomatic recalibration but produced no major breakthroughs. Authorities in Washington described the alleged scheme as a direct exploitation of pandemic-era disruptions that placed extraordinary strain on global supply chains.
