Teo Siong Seng to take leave of absence from Pacific International Lines and NUS in addition to SBF

[SINGAPORE] Shipping veteran Teo Siong Seng, who has been accused by the United States of colluding to fix the prices of dry containers, will take a leave of absence from his role as executive chairman and director of Pacific International Lines (PIL) with effect from Jun 8.

The 71-year-old also confirmed that he will take a leave of absence from his role as chairman of the Singapore Business Federation (SBF) and all related appointments from Jun 1.

His related appointments as SBF chair include his role on the Singapore Economic Resilience Taskforce (Sert) – which was set up last year to help businesses and workers deal with the impact of US tariffs – and his position as a board member of trade agency Enterprise Singapore.

“I have proactively decided to take these leaves of absence to afford myself sufficient time to attend to this matter, and for the best interests of the aforementioned organisations,” he said in a statement on Thursday (May 28).

Teo, who has chaired the federation since May 2025, also said he will not seek re-election after his term ends on Jun 24, 2026.

His statement confirmed earlier comments by the Ministry of Trade and Industry that Teo had informed the ministry of his decision to take a leave of absence from his roles at SBF, Sert and Enterprise Singapore.

He had cited the need to “focus his attention to addressing the indictment by the US Department of Justice (DOJ)”.

An SBF spokesperson had earlier confirmed that Teo would be taking a leave of absence, and that his duties would be assumed by Mark Lee, SBF’s vice-chairman and honorary treasurer.

In his Thursday statement, Teo added that he will also take a leave of absence from his role as pro-chancellor of the National University of Singapore from Jun 1.

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Among the seven people indicted by DOJ

Teo is among seven people indicted by the DOJ for allegedly colluding to restrict the production of dry shipping containers, leading to artificially inflated prices.

As a result, prices of standard shipping containers were said to have roughly doubled between 2019 and 2021, while four of the world’s largest container manufacturers recorded an almost hundredfold increase in profits.

One of the firms is Singamas Container Holdings, a subsidiary of PIL.

Teo is chief executive of Hong Kong-listed Singamas. The company previously said that neither the company nor Teo has been served with any legal process or other legal documentation by the DOJ.

The other accused firms are China International Marine Containers (CIMC), Shanghai Universal Logistics Equipment and CXIC Group Containers.

The individuals indicted include Chinese national Vick Ma, marketing director of Singamas, who was arrested in France on Apr 14 while attempting to board a flight to Hong Kong.

The others accused are Mai Boliang, the chairman and chief executive of CIMC; Huang Tianhua, vice-president of CIMC; Wan Yongbo, general manager of CIMC’s operation management centre; Li Qianmin, general manager of Shanghai Universal Logistics Equipment; and CXIC Group Containers chief executive Zhang Yuqiang.