While COVID-19 has had huge implications on international trade, Brexit also has changed the way things are done and on this episode of Midday Market Update, Kevin Hill and Michael Vincent explore how U.S. trade has been affected.
First in headlines, TFI International is planning to aggressively improve margins at newly acquired UPS Freight by renegotiating terms with its customers or simply cutting them loose. CEO Alain Bedard bluntly addressed the situation on the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call.
Xos Trucks is preparing to go public in a merger with NextGen Acquisitions that could lead to the electric chassis maker being valued at $2 billion.
LTL carrier Saia is looking to expand its terminal network after outpacing estimated earnings in the fourth quarter. The company plans to open at least one terminal during the first quarter and hopes to add four to six in 2021.
To break down the Brexit implications on American trade, Vincent and Hll welcome Jelle de Rooij, supply chain manager at the Holland International Distribution Council. De Rooij says it has been difficult to navigate the new political landscape with Britain becoming a third player in the EU-U.S.-Britain trade pool. As far as COVID goes, de Rooij was impressed by the way Holland has handled the pandemic.
Steve Ferreira, OceanAudit’s CEO, also talks about the current situation on the seas. Ferreira has been vocal about Containergeddon on his FreightWaves podcast, Navigate B2B, and he shares his tips for 2021 contract negotiations for ocean carriers.
Ferreira says one of the biggest hot-button negotiation points is ocean carrier free time, and he explains to Hill and Vincent why companies should look at the value of adding a non-vessel-operating common carrier to their business.
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