By Mike Scarcella

WASHINGTON, June 3 (Reuters) - A U.S. importer has filed a class action in federal court against the world's largest shipping container manufacturers, accusing them of conspiring to fix prices in a scheme that allegedly caused prices to double between 2019 and 2021.

Here are the details:

• Arizona-based C.A. Spalding Company filed the lawsuit on Tuesday in Oakland, California, against China International Marine Containers (Group) Co Ltd, Singamas Container Holdings, CXIC Group Containers Co Ltd, along with other companies and a group of executives.

• C.A. Spalding, which supplies components to aerospace, automotive and other industries, said the alleged scheme forced it to overpay for the cost of shipping goods by container.

• The lawsuit follows a U.S. Justice Department indictment announced last month accusing the defendant companies, which together manufacture about 95% of ⁠the world's standard dry shipping containers, of orchestrating a price-fixing conspiracy. It is common for civil lawsuits to follow criminal antitrust prosecutions.

• Federal prosecutors said the container manufacturers’ customers included “major U.S.-based container lessors, shipping lines, and logistics companies” and that the defendants' price-fixing caused delays and higher prices for American consumers.

• Standard dry shipping containers, which are unrefrigerated, annually carry billions of dollars of products across the oceans to households in the United States, the Justice Department said last month.

• The civil lawsuit is seeking unspecified monetary damages. China International Marine, Singamas and CXIC did not immediately respond to requests for comment.