Overburdened US logistics infrastructure sets off peak season alarms
One minute before midnight on Sunday, Class I rail operator Union Pacific (UP) slammed on the brakes and halted intermodal services from west coast ports to its Global IV terminal near Chicago.
The embargo affects the ports of Long Beach, Los Angeles, Oakland and Tacoma and will last up to seven days.
Source: The Loadstar
SCFI crosses the US$4,000/TEU mark for the first time in history
The Shanghai Containerized Freight Index (SCFI) has exceeded the US$4,000/TEU point for the first time in history on 16 July, reaching 4,054.42 points, marking a 3.1% increase from the previous week and a week-on-week increase for the 10th week in a row.
SCFI, provided by Shanghai Shipping Exchange (SSE), has achieved several records in 2021, while in May it crossed the US$3,000/TEU milestone for the first time, and in the last week, the index marked its new all-time high.
Source: Container News
European intermodal services struggle to recover after chaos from freak weather
European intermodal services were plunged into chaos following flash floods across the continent last week – but now there is are hopes of a fast resolution.
As the fallout from the freak weather conditions extended into Belgium, forwarders told The Loadstar they had seen deliveries cancelled after train operators suspended services throughout Europe and Maersk announced a three-week closure of its Antwerp-Athus rail corridor.
Source: The Loadstar
China’s exports rebounded in June despite shipping delays
In June, China’s exports and imports showed unexpected growth at the same time that massive disruptions rocked Southern China. This could be a sign of recovery after an economic slowdown caused by delays at the Yantian port, an effect that cascaded globally.
On Tuesday, China’s General Administration of Customs released data showing that Chinese exports increased by 32 percent from a year earlier in dollar terms, even more than the 28 percent gain recorded in May. This surpassed expectations from economists, who had forecasted a slowdown due to lockdown restrictions in Southern China.
Source: The Maritime Executive
UK-EU border rule changes looming, BIFA warns
The British International Freight Association (BIFA) is encouraging businesses engaged in physical trade between the UK and EU, and the freight and logistics companies that serve them, to make sure that they are fully prepared for major further rule changes that will take effect over the next six months following an initial postponement – warning that the challenges from January 2022 are likely to be even greater than those of January 2021.
BIFA said that with the clock now ticking on the delayed implementation of Stages 2 and 3 of the Border Operating Model that underpins the UK’s future trading system with the EU, its members are still awaiting clarity on some key information that is needed for them to plan ahead and make certain key operational decisions.
Source: Lloyd´s Loading List
Fires causing rail disruption means vessel pile-up and delays at port of Vancouver
Although rail services between the port of Vancouver and the Canadian interior resumed after the devastating fire that ravaged a town and a nearby First Nations community, constraints on the rail network are causing cargo to pile up on docks and ships to line up for service.
And some traffic is being diverted up the coast to Prince Rupert.
Trains are back in action after a two-day stop, but the traffic moving is a far cry from volumes seen before the fire.
Source: The Loadstar
Container shipping faces the brunt of new European emissions rules
Maritime is having to contend with the splintering of environmental regulations following last week’s proposal by the European Commission of a cap and trade system for shipping emissions. Analysis carried by Splash today shows that of the three main shipping sectors, containers will face by far the greatest impact from the Brussels directive.
The European proposal calls for 50% of the carbon emissions on a voyage to or from a port in the EU, rising to 100% for intra-EU voyages, to be offset by purchasing carbon credits on European emission trading systems (ETS). Shipping’s inclusion in the ETS will start in 2023 and be phased in over three years according to the proposal, which will need the approval of the European Parliament and the EU Council before becoming an EU law.
Source: Splash 24/7
Tight shipping capacity sees carriers skip Busan
South Korea's Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries said that liner operators have been omitting calls to Busan, reportedly because Chinese shippers are more willing to pay higher freight charges.
Citing data from Busan Port Authority, the ministry said that from the beginning of this year to 10 July, 6,767 container ships entered the country's busiest container port, a decrease of about 700 (9%) compared to the same period last year.
Source: Container News
Ever Given will need repairs
The Ever Given, this year’s most famous ship, will need repairs. The Evergreen-operated vessel came to worldwide attention in March when it grounded and blocked the Suez Canal for six days.
After a protracted legal fight over compensation between the ship’s owner, Shoei Kisen, and the Suez Canal Authority, the ship was able to leave the canal on July 7. It then spent five days at Port Said undergoing a class survey carried out by the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) before leaving for northern Europe on July 12.
Source: Splash 24/7
Port of Virginia sets new fiscal year volume record, processes more than 3M TEUs in FY21
The Port of Virginia® set a new June cargo volume record having handled more than 281,000 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units), which is an increase of nearly 71,000 units year- over-year.
June was the tenth consecutive month of record-breaking volumes for the port and helped push its total TEU volume for fiscal year 2021 (FY21) to a record-breaking 3.2 million units. The port’s FY21 TEU volume increased 14.6 percent and 9.6 percent, respectively, when compared with FY20 and FY19 (the port’s previous best fiscal-year performance). The port’s fiscal year runs begins July 1 and runs through June 30.
Source: AJOT
Import surge pushes port of NY/NJ above Long Beach in cargo coastal switch
New York & New Jersey has eclipsed Long Beach to become to the second-biggest US port, behind Los Angeles, which recorded a total of 467,763 teu of imports during June.
The port of NY/NJ recorded a stellar performance in June, seeing a 47.8% year-on-year increase in its throughput, to 390,169 teu, and 29.3% higher than in 2019.
Source: The Loadstar
