A group of shippers is suing several of the world's forwarders in a class-action claim that they are violating anti-trust laws.

Precision Associates, James Barnes and Anything Goes, which does business as Mail Boxes Etc., filed a class-action lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

Named in the suit were Panalpina, Kuehne + Nagel, Expeditors International of Washington, EGL, UTi Worldwide, Deutsche Post and its DHL Express subsidiary, Deutsche Bahn and its Schenker subsidiary and the Association of Swiss Forwarders.

Authorities in Europe and the United States recently expanded their investigations of allegations of price-fixing in the air cargo industry to include some forwarders.

The forwarders have been maintaining since the international investigations became public that they have done nothing wrong and have been assisting the law enforcement agencies involved.

Beginning at least as early as Jan. 1, 2002, to present, the lawsuit alleges, the forwarders violated the Sherman act by raising, fixing, stabilizing and maintaining prices at artificially high and non-competitive levels.

The lawsuit says the forwarders met to discuss and agree upon future price increases, share "actual transactional prices."