C-19 radar

Against the odds: On the waterfront

Don’t be silly, of course, the shipping lines are not a cartel.
And then the central governments and the stevedores are the nice guys in our supply chain plot, fully supportive of a shipper’s business.
Although this is a really Australian-centric story, the narrative is strikingly similar all around the world. Hint: I can feel a shipping line congestion charge coming on, just in time for the American summer…
On the Waterfront
The 1954 Academy …

The post Against the odds: On the waterfront...

https://theloadstar.com/against-the-odds-on-the-waterfront/

Supply chain radar: Pfizer logistics must be as good as its science

Since the credit crunch over a decade ago and one patent cliff after another*, US drug maker behemoth Pfizer has gone through its pipeline troubles seriously challenged, yet has emerged mostly unscathed.
And now, with the Covid-19 vaccine goldmine in sight**, the future may have a completely different taste if a) its magic dose receives the final, green light from the regulators and, equally important b) it gets the logistics angle of its business proposition …

The post Supply chain radar:...

https://theloadstar.com/supply-chain-radar-pfizer-logistics-must-be-as-good-as-its-science/

Monday rant: Why DSV & DP DHL, ‘unexpectedly’ and shamelessly, raise the bar high

Picking the right fights is a hard thing to do, but some are so obvious that even my nine-year-old boy, Matteo, would know where to look.
Hence briefly today, let’s touch upon one the most disturbing aspects of logistics wonderland. That is, if you do well, reeeaaally well, mainly thanks to a planet on the brink of a healthcare disaster in so many spots – you must tell everybody everything about …

The post Monday rant: Why DSV & DP DHL, ‘unexpectedly’ and shamelessly, raise the bar high appeared...

https://theloadstar.com/monday-rant-why-dsv-dp-dhl-unexpectedly-and-shamelessly-raise-the-bar-high/

On the wires: Boiling point

“As suggested by numerous macro indicators, the third quarter saw sequential improvements in global trade after 2Q20 lows. However, volume improvements, especially in air freight, were less pronounced than the backdrop implies.

“Moreover, average airfreight prices, although sequentially lower, remained high compared to 3Q19. Such a high-priced environment served freight forwarders’ 2Q20 margins surprisingly well. However, with customers understanding market dynamics better, we see some risks for...

https://theloadstar.com/on-the-wires-boiling-point/

On the wires: Changes

“The global freight forwarding market is at an unprecedented point of change.” – Transport Intelligence, 22 September, 2020.
Having processed lots of information in the past few days, including ballooning gross profit assumptions associated to the air freight trade (Q2 ’20 was likely peak anyway)...

https://theloadstar.com/on-the-wires-changes/

Against the odds: How to make AP Møller Mærsk shinier

“With a strong result and a strong balance sheet we are well positioned to financially and strategically come out stronger of the crisis.” – Søren Skou, CEO of AP Møller Mærsk Group (APMM), 19 August 2020.
It was a tiny little step both in time and financial delivery from Q1 ’20 (smoke and mirrors) to Q2 ’20 for APMM, but what truly deserves a standing ovation in the wake of results is the co-ordinated …

The post Against the odds: How to make AP Møller Mærsk shinier appeared first on The Loadstar

https://theloadstar.com/against-the-odds-how-to-make-ap-moller-maersk-shinier/

On the wires: Q2 ’20 a stairway to heaven for DHL Global Forwarding

“Especially now, our focus [is] on our profitable core logistics businesses and the digital transformation (…). We have never been in better shape and I am confident that our company will emerge stronger from the crisis.” – Frank Appel, CEO of Deutsche Post DHL (DP-DHL), 5 August 2020, Q2 ’20 results, 
DP-DHL’s Q2 ’20 update? More of the same, if you bumped into the preliminary update released last month (please read: …

The post On the wires: Q2 ’20 a stairway to heaven for DHL Global Forwarding

https://theloadstar.com/on-the-wires-q2-20-a-stairway-to-heaven-for-dhl-global-forwarding/

On the wires: Existential threats – supply chain near-shoring & geopolitical risk

The post Covid-19 world could be a very uncomfortable place for a raft of transport and logistics players, as anecdotal and empiric evidence of a shifting pattern towards near-shoring is emerging.
If you trust the bears, headwinds of all sorts are building across multiple modes of transport and verticals, with road and rail likely to benefit but air and ocean freight the obvious casualties.
Take yesterday’s note from UBS, headed: “UBS Evidence Lab …

The post On the wires: Existential threats –...

https://theloadstar.com/on-the-wires-existential-threats-supply-chain-near-shoring-geopolitical-risk/

Analysis: Jansen & Skou in ideological battle but Saadé laughs first

The most entertaining side, if there is one at all these days, of this rather dramatic Covid-19 pandemic era?
Well, the container shipping masterminds are on a roll, often disagreeing: on corporate strategy (vertical integration, or the lack thereof); funding requirements (not enough cash is kicking around; or whether too much is up for grabs, if you are based in the East); and, of course, state aid in what is clearly …

The post Analysis: Jansen & Skou in ideological battle but Saadé laughs first

https://theloadstar.com/analysis-jansen-skou-in-ideological-battle-but-saade-laughs-first/

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