Transport, Trade and Regulation News

A House subcommittee on Tuesday will be the first to address the impact of an unprecedented surge of Asia imports that began in the spring and container lines and ports don’t expect to let up until early 2022 at the soonest.

It’s been difficult to wedge the benefits of ocean freight into the use of US Customs and Border Protection’s duty-free treatment for shipments valued at less than $800, but increased direct-to-consumer volume is changing the math for shippers.

The National Industrial Transportation League said that the Shipping Act needs to be updated to address the many issues that US shippers have faced over the last 10 months.

Acknowledging the limited authority of the Federal Maritime Commission, new chairman Daniel Maffei wants to take stronger action on so-called unreasonable detention and demurrage.

New pollution rules approved by the Southern California air quality regulatory board are expected to add about 3 percent to the cost of warehouse operations in Southern California, but not result in cargo diversions.

A detention case involving Evergreen Shipping, Yamaha Motor, and a drayage provider is drawing the attention of the Federal Maritime Commission, which is reviewing the application of its detention and demurrage rules.

A New York City regulator who established a minimum wage for app-based rideshare drivers has been nominated to head the US truck safety watchdog agency.

Decarbonization goals at global shippers is pushing the industry toward more granular scrutiny of supply chain-related emissions, a task that’s being helped by emergent technology and a focus on shipper collaboration.

The Texas legislation being questioned by two Federal Maritime Commissioners stemmed from concerns among non-container port users that the growing volume of containerships calling Houston are disrupting the ability of other vessels to transit in an efficient manner.

Descartes has acquired foreign trade zone software specialist QuestaWeb as the global trade management solutions market continues to consolidate.

The Federal Maritime Commission will take a deep look into the detention and demurrage practices in Southern California and New York and New Jersey, requiring ocean carriers and maritime terminal operators to answer questions about their policies related to importers and exporters.

California’s request for the Federal Maritime Commission to take immediate action on export delays shows political pressure is mounting to deal with Southern California port congestion that began over the summer.

As author of the Q&A column, Colin Barrett answered detailed and often obscure legal questions on shipping for 48 years, educating generations of shippers.

A new administration and Congress offer a new chance to break infrastructure spending gridlock, the head of the US Chamber of Commerce says. Meanwhile, the American Society of Civil Engineers fixes a $13 trillion two-decade cost on delaying repairs.

Federal Maritime Commissioner Carl Bentzel is looking into ways that Houston could handle larger vessels before a widening project is complete, given a Texas law that puts size limits on port calls.

A new law that requires the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to develop a plan to use X-rays or similar technology to scan all cars, trucks, and freight trains entering the country could cause a flare up of chronic congestion issues at the southern border.

Marianne Rowden, the longtime public face of a key importer-exporter lobbying group, is stepping down at the end of March as e-commerce growth makes the interaction between shippers and the public sector all the more vital.

Frustrated shippers and forwarders want European competition authorities to take action against what they have labeled market distorting practices by container carriers.

The as-yet-unfulfilled promise of expedited cargo clearance for shippers under US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) trade facilitation programs may soon come at a cost of compulsory self-regulation

The increase in one-way container moves means drivers spend more time waiting on line at different terminals, and running down the hours of service they can legally drive.

New York–based new trade compliance automation startup Altana AI has designs on creating a new version of much-maligned trusted trade cargo facilitations programs.

The US Federal Maritime Commission has rejected an argument from container lines that it lacks the authority to hear the American Trucking Associations’ complaint over so-called merchant haulage moves.

The FMC will look into whether ocean carriers are incorrectly holding truckers, third-party logistics, and freight forwarders responsible for penalties that should be paid by the shipper.

Lawyers representing ocean carriers, OCEMA, and CCM have asked the FMC to dismiss ATA’s complaint into chassis, arguing the regulatory body lacks jurisdiction and only cargo owners can bring such a case.

In what is still very much an evolving scenario, carriers are digesting what they were told by the Chinese government and how it will impact their businesses going forward.

A proposed Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration pilot project would let truck drivers stop the hours of service clock for up to three hours and then resume driving, giving them more control over their schedules, but a longer day.

Logistics managers have to negotiate dueling mandates around speed to market and carbon emissions reductions; a new tool from APL Logistics is designed to help them determine which metric is more important.

New costs related to the COVID-19 crisis and lower revenues due to the pandemic’s effect on cargo volumes are threatening the financial viability of ports across the United States.

The carrier block exemption from Europe’s competition law expires in 2024, but there is a growing view among shipping line customers that an evaluation of the regulation should be held as soon as possible.

Federal Maritime Commissioner Rebecca Dye said the agency’s fact-finding investigation into the largest East Coast port would include three teams consisting of truckers, marine terminal operators, cargo owners, and transportation intermediaries, among others.

A startup that calculates door-to-door cargo shipping emissions has released an interface to convey its data directly to shippers and forwarders needing to meet emissions reductions goals.

An appellate court has denied the commission’s request for a rehearing of an earlier decision that would shift responsibility for background checks and criminal investigations at the largest US East Coast port to New Jersey state police.

Olaf Merk, one of the world’s leading container shipping critics, has spelled out his view of an industry that he says is unfairly advantaged by favorable regulations.

The federal grants will go to waterborne freight services in Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, New York, New Jersey, Oregon, Tennessee, Washington, and American Samoa.

The US Federal Maritime Commission is signaling to the industry that the fairness of detention and demurrage fees should be viewed through a lens of whether they encourage the pickup of import containers and return of empties.

CBP has reversed course on allowing certain importers to defer duties by 90 days for companies whose receipts in March or April dropped by more than 60 percent due to COVID-19.

It is a matter of both national security and economic necessity that the flow of goods to end-markets is preserved. In turn, this requires identifying in detail the critical roles required for the transportation system to function.

The Trump administration may be celebrating its “phase one” trade deal with China as a success, but the collateral damage on Europe will be costly.

CBP issued a statement saying it will no longer accept requests to delay duty payments, after notifying the trade community on Friday that it would consider such requests on “case-by-case basis.”

Disappointment and criticism from users of container shipping services and their service providers has followed the European Commission’s decision to extend the carrier block exemption for another four years.