Almost everyone in the world of freight knows of the chaos that has occurred (and is occurring) in ocean freight during 2021. Many ships are at anchor near a number of U.S. ports and have also been unable to dock at times at Chinese ports as well. As described by FreightWaves Market Experts and reported by FreightWaves editorial staff, ocean freight has been in peak season almost the entire year.
The worst backups have been at U.S. West Coast ports, where most of the ships from China...
It’s chaos at the ports right now. Ocean shipping is experiencing unprecedented delays that are costing shippers thousands of dollars per container per day and could run deep into 2023. Container shipping, dry bulk, liquefied natural gas — it doesn’t matter how or what companies are shipping because rates are spiking across the board.
With no end to the messy situation in sight, knowing when delays will happen becomes more important than ever for carriers. With that in mind, supply chain...
According to the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) website, the Maritime Administration (MARAD) “promotes development and maintenance of an adequate, well-balanced, United States merchant marine, sufficient to carry the nation’s domestic waterborne commerce and a substantial portion of its waterborne foreign commerce, and capable of serving as a naval and military auxiliary in time of war or national emergency.”
In addition, MARAD is charged with ensuring that the U.S. has “adequate...
This is the question that I am asked on a daily basis. The issue is very complex, so I usually quip with a surprising response, “They’ve always had issues, but no one was really paying attention.” Turns out, unless the person works in freight, they are very unsatisfied with this answer. After all, freight and products just seemed to automatically show up before, but that is no longer the case.
Anyone that has been around...
https://www.freightwaves.com/news/why-are-supply-chains-so-messed-up
Overview
APL, which was formerly called American President Lines Ltd., is a Singapore-based container shipping company. It is a subsidiary of French shipping company CMA CGM and operates an all-containership fleet, which includes more than 150 vessels.
Near the end of the Great Depression, the U.S. government took control of the financially strapped Dollar Steamship Co. The government transferred the company’s assets to the newly formed American President Lines in 1938. Singapore-based shipping...
Port Milwaukee is one of several U.S. ports around the Great Lakes that contribute significantly to the local, regional and national economies. While they differ in size and cargo from many U.S. coastal ports, they are equally important.
Overview
The Port of Milwaukee (Port Milwaukee) is located on the western shore of Lake Michigan; it is the only port on the lake that is approved to serve the Mississippi River inland waterway system. It offers direct river barge access from the port to the...
A lighthouse on what is now named Little Brewster Island at the entrance to Boston Harbor began to operate on this day in 1716. The lighthouse was called the Boston Light.
An earlier FreightWaves Classics article outlined the history of lighthouses in the United States. As noted in that article, ships today have navigational and communications aids that were almost unthinkable even 50 years ago, much less in the 1700s. Back then (and ever since) lighthouses signaled mariners as they approached...
Congestion at other West Coast ports has caused an increasing number of ships to use the Port of Portland in hopes of being unloaded quicker and being able to return to Asia for more goods during the 2021 peak season.
Portland is the leading port on the U.S. West Coast for exports. It is also the largest mineral bulk port on the West Coast. Annually, over 17 million tons of cargo move through the port. Of that amount, approximately 11 million tons of cargo moves through port-owned and...
The ports of Georgetown and Charleston are managed by the South Carolina Ports Authority (SCPA). The ports are key to the state’s economy; directly or indirectly the ports generate 10% of all the jobs in South Carolina (over 187,000), and those jobs offer wages that are 32% higher than the state average. The SCPA states that the “ports are the most important strategic asset of the state, driving $63 billion in annual economic impact.”
An average of five vessels sail into the state’s harbors...
Ships today have navigational and communications aids that were almost unthinkable even 50 years ago, much less in the 1700s. Back then (and ever since) lighthouses signaled mariners as they approached land. Over the centuries, the beacons from lighthouses in the United States and around the world have saved thousands of sailors from catastrophe. Even with their 21st century equipment, many ships still rely on lighthouse beacons to guide them to safety and away from danger.