Supply chain

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.

FourKites’ acquisition of the yard management visibility solutions of Denver-based TrackX indicates an intent to build broader freight network visibility for its shipper customers.

Importers can apply to CBP to request an extension to pay applicable duties and taxes due to disruption caused by the coronavirus outbreak.

The lessons learned from logistics managers, carriers, shippers, and high-technology companies — such as inventory backstops and redundancy in the network — will create the groundwork of a new way of approaching mitigating sourcing risk.

A significant number of truck drivers serving India’s major public port have not been reporting to work in recent days because of fears over the coronavirus outbreak and related government restrictions.

DHL Global Forwarding on Thursday warned customers of a potential inability to fulfill its ocean and air freight contracts, echoing warnings from other forwarders that spoke with JOC.com.

The 10-year US economic expansion is over, killed by the response to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-2019), and the recovery will be slow, IHS Markit chief economist Nariman Behravesh warns.

While truck activity is rampant for essential goods, US fashion footwear freight movement is slowing to a halt as department stores shut down, according to supply chain executives.

A trio of prominent logistics technology CEOs told shippers that navigating the coronavirus crisis comes down to decentralizing inventory and avoiding investment in fixed assets.

The response to the new coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is dominating business at FedEx, as global air and domestic ground supply needs swing and the firm looks to prioritize test kits and relief supplies.

FedEx expands use of its US ground unit to deliver more air express packages, as e-commerce volumes swell and Amazon ups the competitive ante.

Forwarders facing the task of continuing operations while under work-from-home mandates are getting a boost from software providers offering free versions of their products to help companies cope with the new distributed environment.

The coronavirus is creating new opportunities for cargo thieves, and demands better “continuity planning” from businesses that ship freight, BSI says.

The MSC Joanna has only burned compliant fuel since the IMO 2020 mandate was imposed Jan. 1, the carrier maintained, but the vessel was found to be carrying high-sulfur fuel oil apparently meant for scrubber testing.

The logistics software provider Freightos is the latest to react to an uncertain freight market by cutting staff, a move the company attributes to the effect the coronavirus disease is having on supply chains and the financial ecosystem.

Denver-based freight broker Archerhub is taking a driver profitability approach to building a successful technology-based business in a market flush with new digital entrants.

Technological prowess is now an expectation for global third party logistics providers. Allport Cargo Services’ approach is not to build its own proprietary systems, but to act as a superuser of Infor Nexus’ shipping software.

In picking former Home Depot CFO Carol Tomé as CEO, UPS puts a former customer from retail e-commerce leader in the driver’s seat.

The Mexican National Guard has ended a protestor blockade that halted trains on a Ferrosur rail line in southern Mexico, one of two incidents in which the federal security force helped free rail lines blocked by protestors in the last week.

The forward truckload freight contract platform has raised $20 million in capital to fuel growing demand to connect shippers and carriers with a binding agreement that lets them focus on more variable supply and demand issues.

The nine container lines that form the Digital Container Shipping Association have released guidelines intended to give all carriers a "common language" and "tasked-based approach" to meeting an IMO resolution around vessel cybersecurity preparedness.

The global nature of the coronavirus outbreak is throwing containerized goods supply and demand out of whack, but a way through the fog for all parties could be to lean more heavily on predictive analytics software.

Dynamic ocean freight pricing — often conflated with instant quoting — can create some unintended consequences that rebound on the intermediaries upon which shippers rely.

“Artificial intelligence is the biggest, biggest catalyst of change that I see in the world, and in our industry,” said Brad Jacobs, the chairman and CEO of XPO Logistics.

The FMCSA is sending undisclosed changes to truck driver hours of service (HOS) rules to the White House for approval, raising hopes for greater flexibility in truck scheduling.

New offerings released this week by Evergreen and Kontainers underscore the recent shift in how cargo transport is sold online and what’s available to book.

Initiatives aimed at turning container ports from conduits of physical freight activity into hubs for the digital information surrounding those cargo movements are underway in virtually every major global gateway.

Logistics system integration provider Chain.io will help shippers and forwarders connect to carrier track-and-trace data via a standard established by the container line-led Digital Container Shipping Association (DCSA) in January.

Indian shippers are being warned to expect higher costs as disruptions related to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) start to permeate the country’s supply chain.

New figures show a minor decline in cargo thefts in Mexico in 2019, as logistics providers and authorities continue to try new strategies for curbing crime.

The addition of the new members in the Global Shipping Business Network will stoke competition in the race to develop platforms that link carriers, shippers, ports, terminals, customs authorities, and banks.

Kuehne + Nagel wants to expand its Asia network, and the giant forwarder has its eyes on specific targets in the region.

The IMO is taking seriously concerns raised in Europe that certain blends of low-sulfur fuels can emit greater amounts of harmful black carbon than the high-sulfur fuels they are meant to replace.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak will distort container flows and global equipment fleet balance for at least another 90 to 120 days, according to Gregory Tuthill, chief commercial officer at SeaCube Containers.

The freight rate marketplace provider Freightos will include an option for shippers to add FedEx customs brokerage services on-demand as part of a broader deal between the two companies that also includes FedEx’s use of Freightos’ air cargo pricing and booking tools.

A Southern California drayage software maker has raised more than $10 million to fund development of its marketplace for drivers and shippers, a sign the pace of investment in this once-overlooked freight segment won’t soon slow.

A no-deal Brexit could knock 14 percent off the UK’s exports to the European Union by value, according to a new United Nations study.

Transportation management software provider 3Gtms’ acquisition of parcel shipping software maker Pacejet represents further evidence that the management of parcel and small shipments is becoming a core need for shippers.

The Chinese government says it will take “strong measures” to ensure supply chain fluidity for refrigerated (reefer) food products, but US exporters must wait for factories to reopen and ships to begin leaving China again.

A sizable investment in a yard automation startup this week is a signal that shippers and logistics providers need to prioritize efficiencies in their warehousing and distribution facilities to cope with the speed of supply chains.