Trendwatch: Canada labor board orders rail employees back to work; Panama Canal eases limits that caused global shipping bottleneck; Threat of more strikes at German ports as workers reject 'inadequate' offer

Canada labor board orders rail employees back to work

An independent tribunal in Canada has ordered workers at the country’s two largest railways to get back on the job and to engage in binding arbitration to resolve a dispute that has snarled North American supply chains.

The Canada Industrial Relations Board agreed on Saturday to Labor Minister Steven MacKinnon’s request for arbitration as well as an extension of the workers’ expired contracts and for the railways to resume operations “forthwith.”

“The board has concluded that, in this case, it has no discretion or ability to refuse to implement, in whole or in part, the minister’s directions or modify their terms,” the CIRB said in its decision, signed on behalf of Chairwoman Ginette Brazeau. The decision was unanimous.

Panama Canal eases limits that caused global shipping bottleneck

The Panama Canal is lifting restrictions that caused a global shipping bottleneck as water levels normalize after a severe drought.

The Panama Canal Authority increased the draft in the waterway to a maximum 50 feet and will allow 36 vessels a day to transit after recent rains lifted water levels at an artificial lake that forms part of the canal system, administrator Ricaurte Vasquez told reporters Monday. The agency expects rains to continue through November, further lifting water levels, he said.

The canal handles about 3% of global maritime trade volumes under normal circumstances, and 46% of containers moving from Northeast Asia to the US East Coast. The channel is Panama’s biggest source of revenue, bringing in nearly $5 billion last year.

Threat of more strikes at German ports as workers reject 'inadequate' offer

German trade union ver.di has rejected the Central Association of German Seaport Operators’ (ZDS) collective agreement offer, sparking strike fears.  

In the fourth round of negotiations for a new collective agreement for the 11,500 employees of the German North Sea ports last month, ZDS submitted an offer that contained two variants with different durations.  

However, a ver.di member survey last week resulted in both variants being rejected as insufficient, and employees voting for renegotiation. 

Canada is adding tariffs to imports of Chinese EVs, steel and aluminum

Canada will slap hefty tariffs on imports of Chinese electric vehicles, steel and aluminum, positioning itself with allies including the U.S. to protect domestic manufacturing.

Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland on Monday unveiled a range of measures she said are aimed at leveling the playing field for Canada’s EV industry and steel and aluminum producers to protect them from unfair competition from Chinese companies.

From October, Canada will implement a 100% surtax on all Chinese made EVs, including electric and certain hybrid passenger cars, trucks, buses and delivery vans. The impost will be in addition to a “most-favored nation” tariff of 6.1% that is already applied to Chinese-produced EVs imported into Canada.

Floods cripple export-import in Bangladesh as main highway swamps

Movement of export-import cargo-laden trucks and other vehicles through the Dhaka-Chittagong highway was disrupted severely as a devastating flood in Bangladesh has inundated roads, highways, homes, and farmlands since late last week. 

Until now 11 districts in Bangladesh are now underwater where 1.23 million families have been affected totalling 5.7 million people while at least 23 have been killed. The flood situation further worsened on Monday amid huge rainfall.

As the country’s prime trade lifeline, Dhaka-Chittagong highways swamped and stayed underwater in many places, the trucks and other vehicles carrying in and outbound cargoes can move slowly and thus stay idle in traffic jams hours after hours. In some places, traffic congestions of 30 to 40 kilometres have been created.

Port Houston July volume dips

Port Houston recorded a 5% decrease in container volume in July 2024 compared to the same month last year, handling 325,277 TEUs. July was a challenging month in Houston, with both Hurricane Beryl and a global system outage that briefly impacted operations. Nonetheless, year-to-date figures show container volumes up 10% over last year, reaching 2,423,474 TEUs and is preparing for a strong peak season.

Loaded imports have risen 9% year-to-date, surpassing 1 million TEUs, fueled by robust consumer demand supported by new import distribution centers in the area as importers have reconfigured their networks to include more volume via Houston. Loaded exports have also increased 12% year-to-date, driven primarily by the booming resin market. Port Houston continues to stand as the nation’s primary gateway for resin exports, with a market share of 60%. Although loaded imports and loaded exports saw a minor dip in July, total containers are up 10% year-to-date, thanks to an uptick in Caribbean, South America, and East Asia trade. Total empty containers are also up 10% compared to last year, as ocean carriers reposition containers for import cargo.

Air cargo market will remain buoyant in H22024: Xeneta

Global air cargo demand increased 12 percent year-on-year in the first seven months of 2024. "This came as a surprise compared to October 2023 when forecasts suggested growth of between one-two percent, with inventory destocking, high inflation and elevated interest rates dampening consumer demand and global trade," says the latest update from Xeneta.

The demand surge in the first seven months of 2024 was a result of fast-rising cross-border e-commerce demand from Asia, disruptions in ocean shipping disruptions due to the Red Sea crisis, a broader general cargo demand increase driven by high-tech semiconductors for high-performance computing and the AI boom, and a low comparison base from last year, the update added.

Japan’s container exports to US surge to 56,174 TEUs in July

Container exports from Japan to the U.S. reached 56,174 TEUs in July, marking a 14.3% increase compared to the same period last year.

This represents the fourth consecutive month of double-digit growth, according to data from Descartes Datamyne.

Direct shipments accounted for 39,094 TEUs, a 32.8% rise, continuing a year-on-year increase for 12 consecutive months since August 2023. The remaining 17,080 TEUs were transshipped along the way, a decrease of 13.3%, making up 30.4% of the total—a 9.9 percentage point decline. The share of transshipped containers has been shrinking consistently for the past 12 months.