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Europe’s busiest ports search for answers to barge congestion Executives from Rotterdam and Antwerp, barge operator neska Container Line, and Dusseldorf-based Asia-Europe shipper Metro Sourcing International gathered at the JOC’s Container Trade Europe conference in Hamburg to thrash out a problem that has dogged the giant hub ports for years. (Above: A barge travels at […]

Fearing no-deal Brexit, Europe shippers add buffer stocks Above: Where the impact of a no-deal Brexit will likely be first seen and felt – the port of Dover is a key player in UK-EU trade and the point where 10,000 of the 14,000 daily trucks cross the border. Photo credit: Shutterstock.com. Shippers across Europe are […]

LTL shippers pressured to digitize billing of lading Digitizing the bedrock shipping document would help LTL carriers cut costs and optimize freight flows, while returning some of those gains to shippers. Photo credit: Shutterstock.com. The drive to automate freight shipping may turn not on driverless trucks, but on a slip of paper. The bill of […]

US intermodal peak delayed, tariffs could be to blame Data suggest shippers moved up their September cargo movements to stock up before US tariffs were enacted on $50 million in goods on July 6 and Aug. 23, and on $200 billion of goods on Sept. 24. (Above: An intermodal train travels in Kansas, United States.) […]

Maersk changes dangerous cargo stowage following Honam fire   Maersk found that existing rules regarding the stowage of dangerous goods cargoes, which create their own oxygen and can’t be extinguished using standard carbon dioxide-based on-board firefighting equipment, to be inadequate and has implemented new procedures across its fleet. Photo credit: Shutterstock.com. Maersk Line will not […]

Maersk changes dangerous cargo stowage following Honan fire   Maersk found that existing rules regarding the stowage of dangerous goods cargoes which create their own oxygen and can’t be extinguished using standard carbon dioxide based on-board firefighting equipment to be inadequate and has implemented new procedures across its fleet. Photo credit: Shutterstock.com. Maersk Line will […]

Return of freighter fleet eases trans-Pacific air cargo pressure The decision by NCA to resume flights between Tokyo and Chicago later this week, on Friday, will add urgently needed capacity to the space-constrained trans-Pacific routes just ahead of peak season. Photo credit: Shutterstock.com. Air cargo shippers struggling with tight space constraints on Asia-US routes this […]

Multipurpose vessel index tracks strength amid pending regulation Toepfer’s index is one of few measurements that create a window into the primarily privately held and still-fragmented, despite recent moves toward consolidation, MPV/HL fleet. Photo credit: Shutterstock.com. The project/heavy-lift market continues to show modest signs of improvement, but competitive pressures from other sectors and uncertainty driven […]

Low-sulfur BAFs rattle already volatile container shipping industry As the deadline requiring the sulphur cap of fuel to be reduced from 3.5 percent to 0.5 percent nears, the impact on not just higher rates but also likely less available capacity is coming into focus. Photo credit: Shutterstock.com. The unveiling of new bunker fuel adjustment factors (BAFs) […]

Cold chains enhance services to meet shippers’ needs Cold chain means much more than storage. The Global Cold Chain Alliance has catalogued more than 75 different value-added services currently offered by cold storage providers. And those services represent a substantial revenue stream that would surprise many. Photo credit: Shutterstock.com. Food safety and protecting the brand […]