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The last two months have been good for the air cargo market on export trade lanes out of Asia, but there remains considerable uncertainty whether the positive momentum will continue.

It appears Mexico is beginning to fulfill its growth potential for domestic intermodal, with asset-based carriers ramping up their activity within the country and in the cross-border market, writes analyst Larry Gross.

The bidding process needs to be “revolutionized” to save shippers money, with more emphasis on strategic relationships, speakers said at the NITL Engage Conference.

Transportation sensor provider Nexxiot and Deloitte are aiming to connect cargo visibility data with the consulting firm’s “know your customer” process to fast-track container movement.

While more port dredging will also be necessary, New York-New Jersey marine terminals are installing more of the cranes needed to handle 18,000-TEU ships that may eventually call the port.

A number of multistory warehouses are planned for urban areas around the US as developers say dependable, same-day delivery in congested cities outweighs the higher costs involved in constructing two- to five-story structures.

As the container shipping industry looks toward 2024, with historic pandemic-driven profits only a memory and expectations for a recovery fading fast, the question of how carriers will react is very much a topic of speculation.

Toepfer’s multipurpose index has maintained its downward momentum due partly to a delay in the emergence of wind cargoes, while Drewry’s index showed some signs of life following a summer dip.

Efforts by carriers to mitigate overcapacity via blank sailings amid depressed container spot rates spell sustained deterioration in container service in general for the foreseeable future, writes Journal of Commerce Executive Editor Mark Szakonyi.

The European Commission’s announcement that the Consortia Block Exemption Regulation was “no longer fit for purpose” and will not be renewed when it expires next April blindsided most in the container shipping industry who were expecting a revision of the rule rather than its scrapping.

Hapag-Lloyd and CMA CGM jointly opened the IN2 in September 2021 as a complementary loop to their sought-after Indamex service to capitalize on pandemic-linked demand swings.

The normalization of container shipping markets is being accelerated by a surplus of capacity, with predictable results on the profitability of ocean carriers.

The Montreal Port Authority said the funding will allow it to “implement a new delivery model” for the Contrecoeur terminal project after talks with initial bidders did not lead to a “satisfactory” result.

With retailers shipping early this year and showing caution in placing orders with Asian factories for holiday merchandise, a major retail group has lowered its forecast for US imports in the coming months.

Both Hongkong International Terminals and Modern Terminals confirmed cargo handling operations at their facilities at Hong Kong’s Kwai Chung container port were halted for about 33 hours, gradually resuming late Monday afternoon.

Tri-Cities Intermodal said it will revive plans to refurbish a cold storage warehouse and rail ramp served by Union Pacific’s intermodal service.

Following a review process launched in August last year, the European Commission reached an emphatic conclusion that the Consortia Block Exemption Regulation (CBER) “no longer promotes competition in the shipping sector.”

Motor carriers may be concerned that in what is still a tight job market, any employees who are let go temporarily would not be available when demand rises again.

US exporters had limited options to send westbound freight in recent years under precision scheduled railroading, but railroads are beginning to restore some services in a bid to improve relations with shippers.

The fourth-largest US less-than-truckload carrier said it had restored many of its core systems by Sunday, while continuing to pick up and deliver freight despite a week of disruption.

The Cosco subsidiary reported mostly positive volume metrics for both the third quarter and nine months through September, although revenues were down sharply.

While no one knows the best solution to reduce greenhouse gases emitted by trucks and trains, several technologies are being tested to find the right answers.

Expansion moves by Lineage Logistics and Ryder System underscore continuing demand for warehousing and distribution space even in a period of low freight demand and slow economic growth.

The chairman of the Federal Maritime Commission wants to thread the needle to find a way to address rail demurrage within the confines of the US Shipping Act, but it’s not an easy proposition.

While light commercial vehicles are not typically used on a large scale by the ocean carrier, it has a significant landside presence where the electric vehicles could be used to lower emissions.

The tone of the recent event was “very dark,” writes analyst Ted Prince, who says the combination of a good economy but low volumes has created widespread confusion in the intermodal sector.

Marine terminal operators in Los Angeles-Long Beach and the Pacific Northwest are dealing with an increase in rail container dwell times owing to an east-west imbalance in rail equipment that has worsened in recent weeks.

The shipping giant is running four dry-van round trips each week on the approximately 400-mile route between the two cities.

The Benelux-based reefer owner/operator says its fast, dedicated and direct model trumps the transshipments, transit times and indirect costs of the major carriers.

To comply with the European emissions trading system, ocean carriers will essentially need to become experts in carbon credit trading, on top of monitoring, verifying and reporting CO2 emissions.

Transit times are still in flux, but UP believes the service will take seven to eight days to Atlanta and an additional one or two days to Charlotte and South Florida.

While shippers say the situation — which could linger through mid-November — is less than ideal, many noted there have been no real impacts yet.

MSC’s move to extend its partnership with Eurogate in the north German gateway port follows a bid by the carrier for a half-stake in Hamburg’s largest terminal operator.

Excess capacity in the truckload market is a chance for shippers to examine whether they or their freight brokers have the right technology tools to effectively price in the contract and spot markets.

The Federal Maritime Commission said its enforcement agency does not have a case against the ocean carrier over a congestion surcharge complaint from a shipper.

If shippers found the post-IMO 2020 bunker fuel formulas confusing and misaligned across ocean carriers, just wait until they see the surcharges linked to Europe’s new emissions trading system, says analyst Lars Jensen.

Brokered LTL freight may be the first freight diverted away from Estes, and it may be harder for those transactional shipments to find alternate carriers.

Consolidated Chassis Management is the sole provider of chassis to the newly launched South Atlantic Chassis Pool 3.0, which covers the ports of Jacksonville, Savannah and Wilmington, North Carolina.

While three companies jointly control some operations at marine terminals at Savannah and Charleston, they are not considered marine terminal operators, an FMC judge has ruled.  

The multimodal transshipment connector is taking shape as the industry puts a heavier focus on end-to-end, point-to-point carrier offerings to enable more resilient and sustainable trade flow.