West Coast ports strike is unlikely even if no deal is reached by July
Employers and the union representing more than 22,000 dockworkers at 30 US ports on the West Coast are unlikely to reach a wage deal by the time the current contract expires next month but neither side foresees disruptions that would hobble supply chains.
“Neither party is preparing for a strike or a lockout,” the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and the Pacific Maritime Association, which represents more than 70 terminal operators and ocean carriers, said in a joint statement Tuesday.
Bloomberg
UK sparks EU ire with bill to override parts of Brexit deal
The UK unveiled legislation to override parts of the Brexit deal it signed with the European Union, risking a trade war with the bloc, which threatened to take legal action.
The bill seeks to hand the UK powers to unilaterally rewrite the bulk of the Northern Ireland protocol, which kept the region in the EU single market after Brexit, creating a customs border with mainland Great Britain. If passed, the new law would allow ministers to rip-up the regulatory framework both sides agreed to in 2019 and replace it with new rules on customs checks, tax and arbitration.
AJOT, Bloomberg
Chittagong depot owners in dilemma as lines refuse to carry hydrogen peroxide laden containers
Chittagong container depot owners are now in trouble as some of the shipping lines are refusing to carry hydrogen peroxide after the depot fire and blast which killed around 48 people and injured hundreds earlier this month.
According to Bangladesh Inland Container Depot Association (BICDA), the depots now have 111 TEU of hydrogen peroxide laden boxes which were supposed to be shipped by this time.
Container News
Record prices for container newbuild vessels
Boxship newbuilding prices are hitting new all-time highs, as container freight levels show no sign of a substantial correction anytime soon.
VesselsValue shows that on 9 June, Japanese tonnage provider Doun Kisen ordered a pair of 23,000 TEU ships at compatriot Imabari Shipbuilding for US$255 million each.
It is not known who will be the charterer of the ships, although Doun Kisen has similar ships on charter to MSC, which has been expanding its fleet aggressively.
Container News
Ocean Shipping Reform Act awaits Biden’s signature
The US House of Representatives yesterday voted overwhelmingly in favour of the Ocean Shipping Reform Act (OSRA), which will see the powers of regulator, the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC), greatly boosted once president Joe Biden signs the law off shortly.
OSRA was created on the back of exporters lobbying politicians to intervene during the supply chain crunch seen in the US during the pandemic. The law will allow the FMC to launch probes of containerlines’ business practices and to apply enforcement measures, require ocean common carriers to report to the FMC total import/export tonnage each calendar quarter and would bar ocean carriers from unreasonably declining opportunities for US exports.
Splash 24/7
Fitch: Port congestion will prevent container shipping’s return to normal in 2022
Fitch Ratings is calling for another solid year for container shipping industry earnings as port congestion will continue to prevent a return to pre-pandemic levels. For shippers, this means high shipping costs and supply chain challenges are here to stay, at least in the near-term.
The container shipping industry earned a “mind-bending” $59 billion in profits in the first quarter of 2022 - a new record - as the industry to benefit from stronger pricing.
gCaptain
South Korean truckers return to work as Seoul considers extending freight system
Goods have started moving in South Korea again today (15 June), after more than 20,000 unionised truckers ended their eight-day strike.
The industrial action stopped after the truckers’ union, Cargo Truckers Solidarity, under the wing of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, obtained an agreement from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) to prolong the Safe Trucking Freight Rates System beyond December.
Container News
