Between the Russia/Ukraine conflict and the lockdowns in China, we can expect continued heightened costs, especially with regard to fuel, which will impact all sectors of the transportation industry.
However, supply and demand remain in better balance though the future is uncertain with regard to the Chinese lockdowns. While Chinese ports are fully operational, the flow of trucks into the ports and factory shutdowns are impacting the flow of goods. Meanwhile, space remains tight due to the disruption of schedules and blank sailings caused by severe congestion at the ports. Because of this, most carriers are booked 4-6 weeks in advance. And COVID outbreaks in China and Vietnam continue to put further strain on the backlog. This puts further constraints on sailing schedules, capacity, and congestion. SPOT rates have come down a bit, however, obtaining space with these rates is challenging. Inland destinations are particularly strained by some carriers omitting through service to inland points as a result of the combined bottlenecks at ports/terminals and rails.
The good news? All industry projections suggest no change in demand from consumers, for now. So, as always, keep on shipping!
Xi’s lockdowns will pull the rug out from under US truckers this summer Xi’s lockdowns will pull the rug out from under US truckers this summer. Whenever the trucking market slows, truck drivers look for someone to blame. Normally, a slowdown is just a function of supply and demand. The market has too much dispatchable capacity compared to the total number of loads on any given day.
Crisis or hiccup? Assessing the logistics impact of China lockdowns Some experts predict ending quarantine restrictions will open cargo floodgates as airfreight feels immediate crunch.
Get ready for the next supply chain shockwave Cargo backlogs in Shanghai a precursor to global port congestion as COVID crisis drags on.
Chinese lockdowns will create shocks to American supply chains (but China is the biggest loser) A look at the continued lockdowns in China and the affect it will have on the American Supply chain.
U.S. Ports Await Surge from China’s COVID Lockdowns The US ports are waiting on another Surge in Container vessels as Asia reopens their factories from the Covid Lockdowns. This will cause a new round of delays that will impact the supply chain in the coming months.
How COVID transformed trans-Pacific container shipping The container shipping in the trans-pacific has changed. This gives a warning about 2022 container pricing and what to expect.
Court rejects bid to ban imports from China’s Xinjiang region over labour concerns Activists concerned about forced labour have lost a court bid for a general ban on the Canadian importation of all goods from the Xinjiang region of China (CTV).
North American Transborder Freight up 17.3% in February 2022 Freight shipped across the U.S. borders with Canada and Mexico by all modes of transportation was valued at $112.5 billion in February 2022, down 1.1% from January 2022 ($113.7B) but up 17.3% from February 2021 ($95.86B) and up17.2% from pre-pandemic February 2020 ($95.95B).
U.S. CBP FACT SHEET: Commercial Traffic Delays Along Texas Border and the Resulting Supply Chain Disruptions The longer than average wait times – and the subsequent supply chain disruptions – are unrelated to CBP screening activities and are due to additional and unnecessary inspections being conducted by the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) at the order of the Governor of Texas.
MSC increases freight rates from Italy to the United States MSC will be temporarily increasing freight rates from Italy to two of the busiest ports in the US. This will only effect bookings from May 13 to May 31 for now.
Decline in China/US spot freight rates continues Spot rates from China to the US continue to decline as a result of decreased sales and full inventories from previous record demand. Ocean carriers are continuing to push for long term contracts for shipping to the US as well and are trying to minimize spot rates.
Long Beach Harbor secures US$2.5 million grant to proceed with zero-emission vision Port of Long beach has been granted $2.5 million to push towards zero emissions at the port. At the same time the Clean Truck Fee that was implemented for each container coming into the port has returned.
Keeping up with the port industry’s evolving fire risks Technological advances in both consumer products and equipment to increase efficiency at ports around the world has brought an increase in fire risks. While working to reduce port downtime and increase container movement the changes in technologies available have increased the risk of downtime by introducing new risks for fires and other accidents.
Get in touch with us!
4444 Wyoming Ave. Detroit, Michigan 48216 | Phone: 313-965-8299 | Fax: 313-965-7399
For more information on Cavalry Logistics International, please visit www.shipwithU.com/international.
For more information on Universal Logistics Holdings, Inc., visit www.universallogistics.com.