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US buying frenzy a contrast to European market serenity

In a typically English and understated way, one analyst thinks the US import market behaviour is “odd”, while another observer said, “we’re in unprecedented territory”, and a third says it’s normal for the US.

No-one had bet on the US consumers entering into such a spree and retailers ordering en masse but analysing the US consumer phenomenon has some analysts scratching their heads, particularly with the European market still seemingly on a go-slow.

Analysts cannot agree about the current...

https://container-news.com/us-buying-frenzy-a-contrast-to-european-market-serenity/

Unilever and SPIL collaborate to monitor shipments

Indonesian domestic liner operator PT Salam Pacific Indonesia Lines (SPIL) and the Indonesian subsidiary of British toiletries maker Unilever have created an interface to enable the latter to monitor the status of goods shipped.

The interface connects the systems of both companies.

Known as an application programming interface, it ensures the speed and accuracy of information needed by the company to see the status of shipments that are being transported by SPIL, said PT Unilever Indonesia’s...

https://container-news.com/unilever-and-spil-collaborate-to-monitor-shipments/

Intense intra-Asia competition as carriers launch more SE Asia services

In another sign of growing intra-Asia container trades, South Korea’s Incheon port has a new link with South-East Asia, through a new services offering regional links.

Intense competition in the East Asia-South East Asia trades is growing, a point noted by South Korea’s Minister of Oceans and Fisheries Moon Seong-hyeok when he launched an enhanced five-year plan to revive the shipping industry on 12 August.

That competition has intensified with the launch by Heung-A of a new service connecting...

https://container-news.com/intense-intra-asia-competition-as-carriers-launch-more-se-asia-services/

Fear of another Beirut disaster is real says ICHCA

Terminal operators around the globe are reassessing their safety procedures following the Beirut explosion which killed around 200 people and injured more than 6,000, making many thousands more homeless.

The International Cargo Handling Coordination Association (ICHCA) told Container News that it had completed a survey on port operations regarding the handling of containerised dangerous goods for a private client, so the results remain confidential, before the 4 August tragedy in Lebanon.

Richard...

https://container-news.com/fear-of-another-beirut-disaster-is-real-says-ichca/

American truckers hit lines with intermodal lawsuit

The American Trucking Associations’ (ATA) Intermodal Motor Carrier Conference (IMCC) has filed a lawsuit against “unlawful actions” by foreign shipping lines that they claim have “cost shippers US$1.8n” in US ports and inland terminals over the last three years.

The legal challenge, lodged with the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) at the end of last week has been filed against The Ocean Carrier Equipment Management Association (OCEMA) and its members: Maersk, Evergreen, Hapag-Lloyd, HMM, COSCO,...

https://container-news.com/american-truckers-hit-lines-with-intermodal-lawsuit/

Montreal dockers return to work

Striking longshoremen in the Canadian port of Montreal have agreed to return to work from 7am on Monday 24 August, local time, following a two-week strike that has seen millions of dollars’ worth of cargo stranded on the quay or unable to land at the port.

Following the intervention of the federal government and the agreement by both the union, the International Longshoremen’s Union 375 (CUPE), representing 1,125 dockers, and the Maritime Employer’s Association (MEA), the two sides have agreed a...

https://container-news.com/montreal-dockers-return-to-work/

Container shipping must Live the digital dream

Dealing with disruption to supply chains is made easier for those digitally savvy companies that took an early leap into the virtual world, says Ross Martin, Chief Operating Officer of StratumFive.

This year, shipping has found itself amidst a once-in-a-lifetime crisis. With Covid-19 fundamentally disrupting the supply chain and causing new and unexpected cost pressures, particularly for container shipping, the sector finds itself looking for new solutions and means to manage the disruption.

For...

https://container-news.com/container-shipping-must-live-the-digital-dream/

Is shipping on the cusp of radical change?

Change is inevitable. And so it is that shipping has arrived at a moment where transformation is coming one way or another. Whether from environmental regulation, technological innovation, political expediency, economic imperatives or global pandemics that drive that change.

It is sometimes difficult to understand where the impetus for change has come from. But in today’s globalised market the stimulus for change is clear; they are a mixture of pandemic, new technology, political expediency and...

https://container-news.com/is-shipping-on-the-cusp-of-radical-change/

Montreal dockers and employers seek negotiated strike settlement

Hopes of a solution to the Montreal dockers dispute increased yesterday as unions and the Maritime Employers Association (MEA) sat down to serious negotiations with the government’s Labour Minister Filomena Tassi, who previously said she would not intervene, acting as an arbitrator.

Tensions once again increased over the last few days as the MEA threatened to bring in outside labour to move some 477 containers of mainly surgical or medical protective equipment currently among the 11,000...

https://container-news.com/montreal-dockers-and-employers-seek-negotiated-strike-settlement/

US WC rates to top US$4,000 in September

China to US freight rates continue their dizzying bull run with some commentators predicting that the China to US West Coast prices will surpass the US$4,000-mark next month.

Container spot rates between the world’s two largest economies continue to soar with the Freightos FBX01 Daily index posting a third consecutive historic record and positioning the FBX03 Daily US east coast index to follow it into uncharted territory next week.

China-US West Coast prices for a 40ft box were up 7% since last...

https://container-news.com/us-wc-rates-to-top-us4000-in-september/

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