OceanWaves: How to navigate the port congestion minefield
Shipping Asia-U.S. via regular ocean service and rail? “I would bet your goods will not arrive in time for Christmas,” says Flexport’s Nerijus Poskus.
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The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic had a negative impact on shipping industry growth in 2020. With the world in lockdown, demand for non-essential consumer goods (and the means to ship them) decreased. Shipment of manufactured goods also decreased as factories closed in an effort to slow the spread of the virus. On top of that, China — one of the world’s largest exporters — was at the center of the pandemic, leading several countries to stop trade with the nation altogether.
According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), maritime shipping industry growth will likely slow or remain flat in 2023, driven by inflation and the ongoing war in Ukraine. For the overall 2023–2027 period, UNCTAD predicts growth at an annual average rate of 2.1%, slower than the previous 30-year average of 3.3%.
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Shipping Asia-U.S. via regular ocean service and rail? “I would bet your goods will not arrive in time for Christmas,” says Flexport’s Nerijus Poskus.
NYSHEX can help untrusting shippers and carriers find common ground to improve contract performance.
Los Angeles is at the front line of the port congestion crisis. Its executive director outlines his strategy to clear anchorages.
“If I’m optimistic, you’re looking six months into the future” before congestion and capacity challenges start to subside, says Vespucci Maritime CEO Lars Jensen.
How will public view ships anchored off Los Angeles/Long Beach if one of them is tied to Huntington Beach spill?
Capesize bulkers haven’t earned this much since 2009, and freight futures just made “monstrous” move up.
The Sustainable Shipping Initiative’s recent report on marine fuels urges the inclusion of all aspects of sustainability, such as air quality, human rights, water, social equity, land use and of course, greenhouse gas emissions.
There are two ways to transport goods overseas: ocean or air. Port congestion and shipping delays are forcing companies to shift to faster air transport, which releases more emissions, costs more per unit and has its own capacity constraints.
With no end in sight for global supply chain crisis, importers warned to brace for high costs throughout next year.
FreightWaves founder and CEO Craig Fuller analyzes inflation in the supply chain.
Containerized exports continue to struggle but overall, U.S. exports are rising. Sales are at record levels for some commodities.
As some Chinese factories go dark, more delays for container imports but bullish sign for coal, LNG and oil shipping.
Trans-Pacific traffic snarl is bicoastal: More container ships waiting off Shanghai and Ningbo than Southern California.
Can collecting carbon dioxide from ambient air combined with renewable energy create a cost-competitive, scalable, carbon-neutral fuel? Maersk is betting on it.
Green shipping technology and fuels are costly and could remain that way until economies of scale and innovation advance — something that many shipping companies say will require government regulations.
Southern California ports would need two weeks with zero vessel arrivals to clear logjam — but the ships keep coming.
Dry bulk shares suffer double-digit declines, with tanker and container stocks also caught up in the sell-off.
Liner profits still rising: second half looks stronger than first and Deutsche Bank sees even higher earnings next year.
Supply chain crisis deepens as more imports snared in historic ship queue off Los Angeles/Long Beach.
“The NTSB determined the probable cause of the capsizing of the Golden Ray was the chief officer’s error entering ballast quantities into the stability calculation program.”
Container ships named The Brady, The Belichick and The Gronk just sold for six to eight times their purchase price, spurring a nine-figure payday.
Dry bulk and LNG shipping stocks now at 52-week peaks with container stocks not far from the top.
Demand for container ships is so extreme that some operators are paying unprecedented sums to rent them.
Two of China’s main ports are preparing for the arrival of Typhoon Chanthu, which could slam Taiwan first.
In unprecedented move, CMA CGM unilaterally halts rate increases until February amid rising global supply chain chaos.
Maersk is adding bio-methanol to its portfolio of green marine fuels after making e-methanol and methanol-powered vessel agreements in August.
Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka has been named the 2021 recipient of the Containerization & Intermodal Institute’s top honor.
New details on record 2019 cocaine haul aboard MSC Gayane — which may not have been the first run — as U.S. wraps up convictions.
Virginia’s competitive advantages: a naturally deep harbor, semi-automated terminals and its own, newer chassis pool.
Cosco and MSC fight back against accusations that they inflated rates, violated contracts and broke U.S. law.
More container ships are stuck at anchor off California than ever before. The gridlock is about to get even worse.
As stimulus-fueled demand overwhelms trans-Pacific capacity, a widening freight spread leaves small shippers behind.
The New York Shipping Exchange, a digital trading platform for two-way committed ocean contracts, announced it raised $15 million in its latest funding round.
Container mega-spike recalls epic dry bulk run over a decade ago. Here’s a look back at the last time shipping had it this good.
A.P. Moller – Maersk expects to save about 1 million metric tons of CO2 emissions annually with eight dual fuel container vessels.
Demand for new containers has been historically high. Even so, the Chinese factories that build the world’s boxes are churning them out efficiently.
Extreme measures to contain delta variant create unprecedented backlog of dry bulk ships off China.
Ocean carrier ZIM now expects to earn $4.8 billion-$5.2 billion this year — five times what it earned in 2020.
Port of Los Angeles boss warns: ‘Anchorage and dwell times are trending in the wrong direction.’
Queue of container ships off U.S. ports keeps building, with months’ worth of peak-season cargo still to unload.
Maersk results offer more evidence that capacity constraints and U.S. — not worldwide — demand drive rates.
“Be careful what you wish for,” warns industry expert Lars Jensen of proposals to rein in container shipping’s boom.
Los Angeles’ port boss speaks to American Shipper about congestion challenges — and potential release valves.
Container giant earned $5.1 billion in the second quarter and expects earnings of $18 billion-$19.5 billion for the year.
U.S. inventory-to-sales ratio still historically low as key import source — China — faces growing delta variant risk.
Almost no container ships were stuck at anchor when 2020 peak season began. This peak season, terminals are pre-clogged.
Disparities between container index prices wider than ever after big course correction by Freightos.
Despite all-time-high container production, demand continues to outpace supply and new box prices keep rising.
Good news for dry bulk shipping stocks, bad news for decarbonization: The global coal trade is thriving.
Despite epic container rates and hefty dry bulk profits, stocks fell by double digits over the past three weeks.
Container ships in the congestion-plagued trans-Pacific trade have stepped on the gas, with some vessels now topping 20 knots.
Wave of cargo delayed by COVID outbreak in Yantian, China, is starting to hit California’s already strained terminals.
What happens to ocean vessels when they’re retired? AskWaves explores how this initiative is striving for transparent ship supply chains.
Crowley’s eWolf electric tugboat will have 70 tons of bollard pull and release zero tailpipe emissions.
An in-depth look at CEO compensation in container shipping, bulk shipping and the cruise industry
One alternative: The team moves to Las Vegas, though that would keep Howard Terminal in place.
New disclosures by lines point to massive ocean-carrier profits in the second quarter.
More box ships, bulkers and tankers are changing hands than ever before — good news for ship values and stocks.
Ocean carriers could make up for two decades’ worth of losses in a single year as demand overwhelms vessel supply.
California offshore traffic jam, Ever Given, Yantian closure, skyrocketing rates and volumes … what’s next for container shipping?
More problems loom for importers of Asian containerized goods and tanker slump could last even longer.
Rates for smaller bulkers remain at decade highs with most dry bulk stocks up triple digits since November.
A year and a half after COVID emerged in Wuhan, China’s exporters, liners, shipyards and container factories are all booming.
The company plans to build on UNF’s transportation and logistics program with real-life experiences, Crowley’s CEO says.
There has never been a better time to own container ships and lease them to liners. But some owners are selling ships and cashing out.
AskWaves explores the difference between measuring emissions based on what comes out of the tailpipe versus the emissions for the entire life cycle of a shipping fuel.
Shipowner associations ask, “What are we waiting for?” to accelerate research and development for zero-emission shipping technologies and fuels.
Americans are spending more on services. Contrary to predictions, this has yet to curb demand for containerized goods.
Spot pricing has surged even higher, propelled by carrier rate hikes and China congestion fallout.
The report says that North America will be less appealing than Asia in the eyes of business, at least through mid-decade.
Former chief mate of MSC Gayane gets seven years behind bars for lead role in massive 2019 smuggling operation.
Decision to secure dedicated vessel highlights unprecedented strength of container shipping and risks faced by importers.
Container spot rates spiked again, with new records set. For importers, the worst is yet to come.
Rising fuel costs are yet another woe for containerized cargo shippers, while widening spreads should benefit ships with scrubbers.
Consolidation in the liner sector is already extreme. Newbuild orders will further concentrate market power in fewer hands.
Congestion is cutting liner capacity just as freight rates are at all-time highs, incentivizing carriers to buy or charter more ships.
Environmental regs could extend future dry bulk and tanker upside, while consolidation could change curve of container-shipping cycle.
Retailers at increasing risk of not getting goods from Asia on shelves as ocean transport system hits limit.
If the farmer had the phone number of the customer buying the grain or OFE’s app to make the match, maybe there wouldn’t be as many middlemen and maybe the farmer would have better options.”
Freight forwarder will pay “absolute historic high” to secure container ship as “people are panicking” amid “out of control” market.
A search is ongoing for three missing crew members from a roll-on/roll-off vessel that sank after colliding with a tanker.
Ships at anchor are unlikely to clear by peak season. Congestion is forcing wide-scale voyage cancellations.
The containers that U.S. shippers need are all built in China, where factories could set a new production record this year.
How bad is it? A Vietnam-New York slot was just offered at $19,000 per FEU, reveals Flexport’s Nerijus Poskus.
ZIM is the liner most exposed to upside from America’s import binge. It’s taking full advantage of the situation.
The Energy Observer is on a seven-year cruise to publicize the role alternative energy could play in the shipping industry.
With the retail inventory-to-sales ratio still falling, U.S. importers are urged to move fast on their holiday import plans.
Container rates are in uncharted territory. If demand continues to outpace supply, there’s little to stop them from ascending further.
The situation for importers is getting even more dire. Already extreme container rates are ascending to even higher peaks.
Danaos will stockpile cash from the current boom and spend it on new ships when environmental regs are clearer.
Trans-Atlantic product tanker rates have spiked, but a quick pipeline restart would curb future upside.
Formerly containerized cargoes are being loaded onto bulkers. Box-ship orders are keeping future bulker growth in check.
Tanker execs explain lack of distress sales and scrapping this time around, and why new orders will be more curtailed.
Maersk reveals more details on its shift toward long-term contracts at the expense of spot exposure.
Importers are scrambling as demand sails past ocean transport supply. The numbers paint an ominous picture for cargo shippers.
COVID has been great for stocks. In ocean shipping, container and dry bulk shares rode the wave. Tankers stocks sank.
Chinese container production still trails torrid demand. Ever Given accident was ‘icing on the cake’ — making box shortfall worse.
Now that shipping lines hold the pricing cards, importers must reset strategies, says Sea-Intelligence’s Jochen Gutschmidt.
Within maritime logistics circles, an effort is underway to update the technology the industry relies on to take advantage of recent advancements in hardware and software technology.
West Coast congestion could last into the fall as retailers face stockouts on essential goods, says ocean carrier Matson.