The coronavirus pandemic continues to hammer U.S. west coast ports. The Port of Long Beach on Friday reported that 602,180 TEU was moved across its docks in June, making for an 11.1% decline compared to June 2019. Imports shrank 9.3% to 300,714 TEUs, exports dropped 12.2% to 117,538 TEUs, and empty...
u.s. ports
Legislation introduced to improve sustainability measures at U.S. ports
This week, U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., introduced the Climate Smart Ports Act of 2020 — legislation to create a $1 billion per year federal program dedicated to improving sustainability measures throughout U.S. ports. The legislation has also been introduced in the U.S. House by Rep. Nanette Diaz Barragn, D-Calif.
The bill would assist ports and port users by replacing cargo handling equipment, port harbor craft, cargo delivery trucks, and more with zero emissions equipment and technology....
U.S. West Coast Dockworkers Stop Work in Protest of George Floyd Killing
Dockworkers with the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) will stop work and lay down their tools this morning for an 8 minute and 46 second moment of silence in honor of George Floyd and all victims of police brutality. The ILWU represents dockworkers primarily on the U.S. West Coast...
U.S. Economy is Still Far From Smooth Sailing, Port Chief Says
By Brendan Murray (Bloomberg) — The U.S. economy is unlikely to snap back quickly and may not return to normal until 2021, according to the chief of one of the nation’s biggest ports, after a government report raised hopes for a faster-than-expected rebound from a pandemic-induced recession. Even...
U.S. Total Trade Slumps to Lowest Level in Almost a Decade
By Ana Monteiro (Bloomberg) –U.S. trade in goods and services plunged in April to the lowest level in almost a decade as the Covid-19 pandemic stifled demand and hindered logistics. Exports declined from the prior month by 20.5%, the biggest drop in comparable data back to 1992, to $151.3 billion....
Study: America’s ‘Blue Economy’ Worth $373 Billion in 2018
The United States’ marine economy contributed about $373 billion to the nation’s gross domestic product in 2018 and grew faster than the nation’s economy as a whole, according to new statistics released today by two U.S. Department of Commerce agencies. The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA)...
FMCSA issues intermodal chassis inspection waiver
Regulators are giving intermodal chassis providers a three-month reprieve from required annual inspections for recently expired equipment to help alleviate disruptions caused by COVID-19.
The waiver, issued by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) on June 1, was granted to the Intermodal Association of North America (IANA) on behalf of ocean carriers, railroads, leasing companies, and motor carriers with chassis registered in IANA’s Global Intermodal Equipment Registry (GIER)....
https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/fmcsa-issues-intermodal-chassis-inspection-waiver
Coronavirus bill contains win for maritime industry
It took a pandemic for Congress to finally make a long-sought change to the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund (HMTF) that would allow the full amount of deposits to the fund to be used to finance dredging of coastal and inland harbors and ports.
The change is tucked inside the expansive $2 trillion emergency aid bill passed by Congress two weeks ago to help the nation respond to the coronavirus outbreak.
Known as the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES), the legislation provides...
Busiest Port in U.S. Sees 23% Drop in Cargo Volumes in February
U.S. West Coast ports were already facing headwinds this year from the protracted U.S.-China Trade War. Then came the coronavirus. On Tuesday, the Port of Los Angeles, the United States’ busiest port and a hub for Chinese imports, said February’s TEU volumes decreased 22.9% compared to last year...
Georgia Ports Set to Pass 4.6 Million TEU in 2019
The Georgia Ports Authority is on track to exceed 4.6 million twenty-foot equivalent container units for the first time in 2019 as it continues to add capacity. With that figure, the port is looking at a 14 percent increase in volumes moved through Savannah compared to just three years ago, or an...