Logistics Technology News

Damco posted a rare profit in the second quarter as Maersk’s troubled freight forwarding and logistics arm reaped the benefits of a radical restructuring program.

The Italian government plans to sell up to 40 percent of the state-owned postal company Poste Italiane in an initial public offering in October.

Allcargo Logistics Ltd., India’s leading international freight forwarder and logistics provider, posted a big jump in net earnings driven by strong gains across multiple segments, especially cargo consolidation, in the first fiscal quarter.

UPS plans to build a parcel distribution center adjoining London Gateway in a major boost to the container port’s bid to become one of Europe’s biggest logistics hubs.

CEVA’s second-quarter earnings surged 25 percent as it continued to reap the benefits of a new business model and maintained ocean and air freight volumes in the face of uneven global demand.

Orbcomm Inc. swung to a $12.2 million loss in the second quarter, after expenses mounted in the wake of recent acquisitions and the company lost communication with one of its low-earth-orbiting satellites.

Major Japanese international freight forwarder Kintetsu World Express Inc. saw its group net profit more than double in the first quarter of fiscal 2015, as it no longer feels the pinch of an antitrust class-action lawsuit in the United States.

Echo Global Logistics’ profits took a tumble in the second quarter after the recent acquisition of Command Transportation in April. Revenues and volumes, however, were significantly higher and look to buoy future loss -— a testament to the success a third-party logistics provider can find in consolidation.

Expeditors International made more gains in air freight and ocean container volume in the second quarter, despite the fading impact of the West Coast port crisis, which gave trans-Pacific air cargo more lift. That helped the forwarder boost both net revenue and profit.

Deutsche Post DHL trimmed its 2015 profit forecast after strikes by postal workers in Germany and restructuring costs in its global freight forwarding unit sharply reduced its second-quarter earnings.

XPO Logistics raised its 2019 revenue target to $23 billion, more than triple its $9 billion revenue run rate in mid-2015. A "two-pronged" pipeline of potential acquisitions in North America and Europe will help XPO meet that goal, CEO Bradley S. Jacobs said.

The value of major global transportation acquisitions jumped 50 percent in the second quarter and rose 16 percent from the first quarter, as trucking and logistics firms reached across borders to buy their way into new markets and expand services.

Danish trucker and freight forwarder DSV posted a better-than-expected increase in second-quarter earnings, driven by sharply higher air and ocean container profits, leading it to upgrade its full-year earnings forecast.

The port-based logistics provider said it has acquired 48 acres adjacent to the Krishnapatnam port, near Chennai, for the construction of a new container freight station a month after the company kicked off a plan to build an inland container depot center at Viramgam, near Ahmedabad in Gujarat State.

Japanese international freight forwarder Yusen Logistics Co. returned to profit in the first quarter of fiscal 2015, which started April 1, thanks to robust revenue growth and the end of heavy losses caused by an antitrust lawsuit in the United States.

Transport Corporation of India posted a 17.4 percent jump in net profit in the first fiscal quarter, primarily on the back of strong gains from its freight division.

FedEx and TNT Express said they still expect to merge in the first half of 2016 despite the European Commission’s decision to launch an in-depth investigation of the US firm’s 4.4 billion euro ($4.8 billion) acquisition of its smaller Dutch rival.

The European Union has opened an investigation into FedEx’s efforts to acquire TNT Express on the grounds that there would be insufficient competition in the market.

The $1.8 billion acquisition of Coyote Logistics adds truckload brokerage to UPS's transportation portfolio, giving it new inroads to shippers and freight, and promises greater efficiency for its package network.

Gati Ltd., India’s leading express distribution and supply chain solutions provider, reported its group net income fell 33.3 percent in the first fiscal quarter from a year earlier to Rs. 10 crore (about $1.56 million) despite healthy revenue growth.

China’s HNA Group has agreed to acquire Swissport International, the world’s largest airport ground and cargo handling company, from PAI Partners, a Paris-based private equity firm, for 2.73 billion Swiss francs ($2.8 billion).

C.H. Robinson reported higher net revenues on land and sea as shippers apparently turned to the largest U.S. logistics company to secure capacity in the second quarter. The acquisition of Freightquote last year contributed to higher net revenue and higher truckload and LTL volumes.

Strong cross-border business in Europe and the highest demand for deferred package service in the U.S. in a decade helped UPS increase second quarter profits, despite falling revenue.

Panalpina’s earnings dipped two percent in the second quarter on sluggish growth in ocean container traffic and a decline in air freight volumes.

UPS reportedly is in talks to acquire fast-growing Coyote Logistics, as round after round of logistics acquisitions this year increase speculation about potential mergers.

FedEx Express is re-engineering its global network by replacing older, higher capacity planes with more efficient, technically advanced aircraft that have lighter payloads. The result should be a more efficient, higher yield operation in an era of slower air cargo trade.

Strong demand for outsourced services will help U.S. logistics suppliers expand and encourage more mergers and acquisitions, a consultant told Stifel investors.

Descartes, which operates the Global Logistics Network, recently purchased MK Data Service for $76.3 million in cash, giving shippers who use the network one more way to protect themselves from doing business with denied parties.

The European Shippers’ Council adamantly opposed UPS’ proposed takeover TNT Express, but the group has no qualms with FedEx buying the ailing parcel provider for $4.8 billion.

UPS expanded the insurance and logistics services it offers shippers of high-value cargo such as jewelry by acquiring Insured Parcel Services from G4S, a global integrated security company.

European shippers needing industrial spare parts to prevent the stalling of production lines will be able to take advantage of a new global distribution hub.

German logistics operator DB Schenker and Austria’s Express Interfracht have been fined a combined 49 million euros ($54 million) by European Union trust busters for fixing freight rates for eight years.

Kuehne + Nagel’s net earnings rose 6.8 percent in the second quarter as strong growth in air freight tonnage offset lower ocean container volumes.

CaroTrans Thursday announced it would resume its direct, weekly import service between Rotterdam and Antwerp and the Port of Los Angeles, backing reports that U.S. West Coast port congestion is finally easing almost six months after labor disputes there came to a close.

Germany’s Deutsche Post is pushing ahead with plans for new low-cost DHL parcel delivery companies in its domestic market after resolving a long-running dispute with unions that had led to a series of strikes over the past three months.

A software company that provides information on truck stops, weigh stations and other on-the-road services to U.S. truckers is now offering a free beta test of its freight marketplace platform to the public.

Gary Wilcock, managing director of Kerry Logistics Europe, passed away on June 21 after a short battle with cancer. He was 54.

Agility Logistics has appointed a new CEO for its South Asia operations as the company seeks to capitalize on the intra-Asia’s growing trade.