By Jonathan Saul and Lisa Baertlein LONDON/LOS ANGELES, March 25 (Reuters) – The suspension of traffic through the Suez Canal has deepened problems for shipping lines that were already facing disruption and…
covid container crunch
Shortage of New Shipping Containers Adds to Global Trade Turmoil
By Bloomberg News (Bloomberg) — The world’s biggest makers of shipping containers are scrambling to meet a surge in demand for the metal boxes that shuttle some 90% of the goods around the…
Exporters Take Unusual Steps to Ease Shipping Container Shortage
By Ann Koh and Rajesh Kumar Singh (Bloomberg) — Some of the world’s biggest exporters in Asia are intervening to alleviate a shipping container shortage that jeopardizes their overseas trading. Government-owned…
Global Food Trade Upended by Container Crisis
By Isis Almeida, Ann Koh and Michael Hirtzer (Bloomberg) — Food is piling up in all the wrong places, thanks to carriers hauling empty shipping containers. Global competition for the ribbed steel…
Shipping’s Container Crunch Showing Signs of Easing
By Brendan Murray (Bloomberg) — A global shortage of shipping containers that’s sent ocean freight rates skyrocketing shows signs of easing, according to an index that tracks the steel boxes used…
Boxship Space in Asia Now Going, Going, Gone – to the Highest Bidder
By Mike Wackett (The Loadstar) – Major forwarders are engaged in fierce bidding wars in China, in order to secure equipment and space to North Europe. And several carriers are reported to…
U.S. Trade Gap Widened to Second-Biggest on Record in November
By Eric Martin (Bloomberg) — The U.S. trade deficit widened to the second-largest on record in November as merchandise imports reached a more than one-year high in the midst of the…
Year In Review – Top Maritime Stories of 2020
What a year! With 2020 coming to a close, we’re taking a look back at the maritime stories that continued to make headlines all year long. IMO 2020 The year…
Freight Boom Fires Buffett Trains, Maersk Ships and Oil Prices
By Alaric Nightingale, Jeffrey Bair and Christian Wienberg (Bloomberg) — A great global restock is at hand, filling ships, trucks and trains, and also firing oil demand. During the depths of…
COVID Restocking Surge Continues at Port of Los Angeles
The Port of Los Angeles reports that November cargo volumes were up more than 20 percent compared to last year on a combination of increased consumer spending, holiday shipments and…