Monthly Archives for July 2017

Improvisation key to humanitarian aid shipments Difficulties in organizing international aid shipments arise far before the last mile. NEW ORLEANS — You’re moving a one-time shipment of mixed cargo to a remote country with poor infrastructure, and no one in your organization knows the first thing about shipping. For Jack Fong, that’s a typical customer. […]

Flood of giant vessels to keep Asia-Europe rates under pressure At 21,413 TEU, OOCL Hong Kong was the first ship to cross the 21,000 TEU barrier when it was launched in Korea in May. The vessel is the first of six ultra-large container ships that will serve on the Asia-Europe trade. Ultra-large container ships greater […]

Slideshow: How Fagioli handled the 'move of the year’ Hannibal used elephants to cross the Alps into Italy, but more than 2,000 years later that was not an option for the movement of a large tunnel-boring machine from Germany to Italy. Italian heavy hauler Fagioli used trucks, barges, and ships to move sections of the […]

Slideshow: How Fagioli handled the ’move of the year’ Hannibal used elephants to cross the Alps into Italy, but more than 2,000 years later that wasn’t an option for the movement of a large tunnel-boring machine from Germany to Italy. Italian heavy hauler Fagioli used trucks, barges, and ships to move sections of the machine, […]

Eastbound trans-Pac spot rates slip in third straight week Trans-Pacific capacity is rising. The peak-shipping season in the eastbound Pacific has yet to take off in earnest as spot rates declined slightly for the third consecutive week. By contrast, in mid-July last year spot rates were moving higher, and they remained strong through the end […]

US poultry exports forecast to fly higher The US chicken industry is recovering from down years caused by avian influenza. Robust demand is expected to push US poultry export volume higher this year in a global market roiled by outbreaks of avian influenza and trade restrictions Containerized exports of US poultry rose 3.3 percent year-over-year […]

China plan to ban waste imports threatens US exports China’s notification to the World Trade Organization(WTO) that it will no longer import solid waste by the end of this year imperils 8.2 percent, or nearly 1 million TEU, of all US exports, according to an analysis of data from PIERS. Click to Enlarge The WTO […]

Congestion paralyzes Chittagong port The Chittagong port is in desperate need of infrastructure improvements. Severe congestion in Bangladesh’s prime seaport Chittagong caused by low draft and broken ship-to-shore gantry cranes has crippled loading and unloading, nearly doubling the average time ships spend in port, and there’s no immediate solution on hand. Click to Enlarge The […]

Asia-Mediterranean trade outpacing forecasts Growth at Mediterranean ports such as Genoa has been beating expectations. Container traffic on the Asia-to-Mediterranean route has outpaced forecasts but the phasing in of larger vessels will put on pressure on spot freight rates towards the end of the year, according to Drewry Shipping Consultants. Traffic growth has risen from […]

US exporters tapping new DDG markets hurts container volumes Shipping dried distillers grains is marked by uncertainty after aggressive trade actions in Asia. Trade disputes with their primary customers China and Vietnam are driving US exporters of dried distillers grains (DDGs) to overhaul their supply chains, tapping new markets from Turkey to Thailand that not […]