11th annual TPM conference sets new attendance record – a 31 percent increase over 2010

Newark, N.J. – March 11. A record-breaking 1700+ attendees, representing 17 countries including China, Switzerland, Korea, Australia, Taiwan and others, participated in the 11th annual Journal of Commerce (JOC) Trans-Pacific Maritime (TPM) conference in Long Beach, California on March 7-8. A “must-attend” event for those involved in container shipping, the JOC TPM is the key annual gathering of BCOs, carriers, 3PLS, railroads and others involved in trans-Pacific trade. Attendance was up more than 31 percent over last year and more than 70 percent over the 2009 event.

Held in early March prior to the annual contract negotiating season, the two-day educational and networking forum offered a revealing look at the major issues confronting the trans-Pacific market. Topics discussed and debated included carriers’ planned exit from providing chassis, slow steaming by container lines to cut fuel costs and absorb capacity, trans-Pacific trade forecasts, the future of intermodal, and exporting issues from the point of view of contracting, freight rates and equipment availability. The conference also marked the official launch of JOC Exchange, an online marketplace used to facilitate the selling and buying of non-contracted, spot market slots on container ships.

The JOC TPM event has emerged as one of the world’s major maritime events, this year attracting several hundred BCO companies including Target, JC Penny, Home Depot, Walgreens, Dow Chemical, Best Buy and many others, as well as the major container lines, 3PLs, railroads, port authorities and marine terminals serving this market. The event is a neutral forum, a reflection of mutual inter-dependence required among all parties involved in the complex process of containerized trade.

“At every turn, the conference exceeded expectations,” said Peter Tirschwell, senior vice president, UBM Global Trade, parent of the JOC. “Participants can count on future TPM conferences to continue delivering high caliber, thought-provoking content that drives change.” The 2012 TPM conference will be held at the Long Beach Convention Center in early March of next year.

The JOC will be launching three new events in June, including a Container Shipping Conference, in Shanghai, China, on June 21-22, an Inland Port Logistics Conference, in Chicago, Illinois on June 28-29, and a virtual TPM conference, which will provide new updates on several of the topics discussed at TPM Long Beach. For information on these events, please visit joc.com/events.

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