News

A concern is expressed over a potential lack of investment to get railroads ready for the future.

Drewry reports the latest round of U.S. tariffs means “eastbound transpacific flows could be hit with an opportunity cost of approximately 1 million TEU next year.”

But UNCTAD expresses concern “increased inward-looking policies” and rise in protectionism could stifle trade.

Legislation includes provisions to require advance electronic data for international postal shipments and to strengthen DOT’s alcohol and drug testing practices.

The FMC commissioner is meeting interested parties at ports around the country as part of the second phase of the Fact Finding 28 investigation.

Containership charterer describes the investment of up to $200 million in Swiber Holdings as “opportunistic.”

Oil Major Shell has announced upcoming availability its newly developed Very Low Sulphur Fuel Oil (VLSFO) ahead of the IMO 2020 – 0.50% global sulphur limit for marine fuels. FreightWaves has the charts.

UN trade and development body UNCTAD has outlined seven key challenges to maintain a positive momentum for the freight markets in global trade.

Senate passes legislation paving way for airport funding and streamlining certifications.

UNCTAD expects volumes across all maritime segments to grow in 2018. However, it warns that trade wars can disrupt the global trading system and there is a need to assess the implications of vertical integration within the industry, addressing any potential negative effects.

Tropical Storm Rosa’s winds weakened before reaching the Desert Southwest, but not the rain. Phoenix had its wettest day on recorded history because of the storm.

Greece is cleaning up from flooding and wind damage after a strong cyclone moved through parts of the country.last weekend.

October is traditionally a slower month than the 4 preceding it in terms of volume. This year it has happened as soon as the calendar turned. This seasonal swing does not mean it will be a quiet fourth quarter for everyone.

FreightWaves has been selected as one of 15 start-up companies featured in the Futures Industry Association (FIA) Innovators Pavilion during the annual FIA Futures and Options Expo in Chicago in mid-October.

The United States – Mexico – Canada Agreement (USMCA) protects multinational oil and gas companies’ investments in Mexico from incoming President López Obrador.

Survey data from the manufacturing and service sectors continue to point towards robust growth in the 3rd quarter. Manufacturing activity slipped slightly from multi year highs during the month, but service activity has pushed to record highs despite shortages in labor and trucking capacity.

Additional robotic deployment comes as XPO readies for seasonal rush.

We break 2018’s crude oil production down by state and month.

Industry participants want practical applications. They want to know what’s happening, and whether or not it’s an actual solution for their needs.

Mike Lacey sees some improvement in his relationship with railroads, but it’s coming from a very low point.

Newly launched venture called Transmission aims to bring low-cost ELD product to drayage and intermodal motor carrier.

Driver churn continues to plague the industry as the turnover rate at large truckload carriers has reached its highest point in five years.

Stifel’s John Larkin captivated the audience with a wide-ranging presentation on transportation and logistics across modes during Tuesday’s lunch at the McLeod User Conference 2018.

Just weeks after a federal judge sided with the company and decertified a class of about 11,000 current and former drivers who filed suit, J.B. Hunt has reportedly reached a $15 million settlement with the drivers.

BNSF announced that former chief executive Matthew Rose will retire from a his role as executive chairman of the largest freight railroad in the U.S. effective next April, and more in Today’s Pickup.

Long-serving railroad man led BNSF through acquisition by Berkshire Hathaway.

Logistics company argues that it has improved conditions at warehouse one year after its purchase.

The debt rating agency sees some drawbacks to the process, but is otherwise strongly in support of the growing trend.

Rising driver wages and fuel costs pushed up the cost per mile to operate a commercial vehicle in 2017, according to an annual report released by the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI). The group said it cost $1.69 per mile to operate a truck last year, up 6% from 2016’s cost.

New Prime vs. Oliveira aims to settle who can arbitrate and who is a transportation worker under Federal Arbitration Act.

Residual fuels that have “undergone rigorous fit-for-use assessments” will comply with the International Maritime Organization’s low-sulfur cap.

CSX also will offer improved access to the Ohio rail hub from the Port of New York and New Jersey.

Intelligent automation is designed to make logistics operations safer and more productive.

Australia’s east coast grains industry suffers an ongoing drought causing severe shortfalls, and grains are being moved from West Australia to East Australia in record volumes to the point where the industry will have to consider importing grain from overseas.

Former senior vice president likes to “push the limits of the logistics and supply chain management industry.”

International nonprofit names members of advisory council and board of directors; payment, supply chain and logistics companies announce hires.

Expanded network will enable two-day delivery to 98 percent of the United States.

We take a look at the U.S. maritime industry in our latest infographic.

Search and rescue teams continue looking for survivors of last week’s earthquake and tsunami devastated Indonesia. Funds have been declared for recovery.

BNSF will use the CSX system to haul intermodal freight from the LA/Long Beach port, and service on the CSX system will be added from the New York/New Jersey port.

As peak season nears, EnVista’s Senior Project Manager Mark Taylor gave FUEL 2018 attendees his best tips to navigate the sea of surcharges that lies ahead.

Industry veteran Jeffery Barrie has been named CEO of DB Schenker USA, effective Nov. 1, 2018. Barrie will lead all operations in the U.S. and report directly to Philippe Gilbert, Region Americas CEO.

Tired truck drivers? That’s a big concern based on a new survey by the National Safety Council that found 97% of transportation employers are worried about employee fatigue.

In a time when consumers are opting to spend less time in the kitchen, restaurants and grocery stores, convenience is king and grocery delivery services are popping up everywhere.

FreightWaves adds additional risk management and compliance information in the most recent SONAR release.

The depreciating Indian rupee coupled with rising fuel prices have hit the Indian transportation corridor quite hard. The Indian government is now coming up with new regulations and innovative transportation practices to ease pressure.

Cashflow Corner presented by TriumphPay …There are numerous tips available on how truck drivers can save money on the road, and while not all will work for everyone, chances are you can benefit from something on this list.

Two of McLeod’s clients talk about how they use profitability analysis tools daily and how they drive better business decisions.

Even for small decisions you make, the computer is calculating millions of small permutations every time. If you do this thousands and thousands of times, the tool gets better and better.

Oil producer group reports in its annual outlook that it believes compliance will grow after 2020.

Capacity creator, waterfall tendering, and max buys based on near-time market rates should help make brokers even more productive.

It’s taken several years, but the eight biggest manufacturers of rear underride equipment now get the top grade from the IIHS.

Going into next year as steel demand from housing construction skews to a slower growth trajectory, Beijing is increasing its spending on infrastructure.

Japanese classification society says a large number of shipowners are planning ballast water treatment system installations in a narrow time window.

A quick round-up of what you need to know about maritime today, but didn’t have time to learn about, yet.

Gov. Jerry Brown signs bill that could speed up plans to build a new Oakland Athletics ballpark at Howard Terminal.

But the “big boys” like Walmart, Target and Best Buy are expected to be doing business in their stores and online.

New president leads domestic and international operations; French company appoints executive board; and Jamaican maritime leader chairs subcommittee.

With the explosion in tech over the past few years in transportation, it’s increasingly urgent to provide real solutions with systems integration capabilities that let drivers, carriers, accountants, managers, and brokers tap into innovation and information.

A roundup of economic data releases and events over the past month, and view of trends worth watching in October. Freight demand conditions remained generally solid during the month, though international trade and housing remain trouble areas. Supply within trucking looks to be expanding, and hires in the industry continued to climb

Atlas Van Lines conducted a survey asking 475 truckers what they like to eat/drink while on the road. Our latest infographic highlights some of their answers.

Atlas Van Lines conducted a survey asking 475 truckers what they like to eat/drink while on the road. Our latest infographic highlights some of their answers.

The drought-stricken Desert Southwest is getting too much rain at once, with reports of flooding already coming in. But in the long-term it might not be all bad news.

Start-up looks to spread adoption of more nimble APIs to replace legacy EDIs used widely in transportation industry.

Typhoon Trami slammed southern Japan on Sunday, killing at least two people and knocking out power to around a million others. The storm also stalled transportation for hours.

In a message to customers, FreshDirect CEO McInerney apologized for the rocky segue. The transition to the new Bronx facility “has not been as smooth as we planned,” McInerney told customers in the Friday morning email.

Smart cities end up producing millions of data points every minute. City administrations need to wake up to the potential of data analytics and think of a way to utilize data and reduce urban traffic congestion.

Tender volumes are taking many by surprise, but not those that understand what is happening with the use of ELD’s by small carriers, especially in the dry van segment.

An annual review of the logistics business gets published; dueling intermodal views; and a startup gets a big chunk of funding.

Concerns over a global trade war have eased this morning, as Canada agreed late Sunday to join a trade deal between the US and Mexico. The deal makes modest revisions to the previous North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), and clears up some of the uncertainty surrounding the trade environment.

The annual report by Infosys and others reflects an industry that is largely satisfied with the work that is being done, but with a recognition of areas that need improvement.

In the final run-up to the midnight deadline, Canadian and U.S. trade negotiators reached agreement on the language for a NAFTA replacement.

A response to an earlier piece discussing railroad attendance at IANA’s recent expo and the benefits of precision railroading.

Federal judge finds chemical manufacturer and NVOCC liable, not the shipowner or liner company.

Action targets XPO Logistics and NFI Industries operations over a wide area of Southern California.

Korean private equity firm’s purchase would add bulkers, tankers, gas carriers and breakbulk vessels.

JAXPORT has named Jacqueline Glass as its new director of procurement services. Glass has more than 25 years of experience as a supply chain professional focused on strategic sourcing and […]

China’s National Bureau of Statistics reported slowing growth pointing to weaker exports as the China Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) dropped to 50.8 percent, down 0.5 percentage points from the previous month to the second lowest reading in 12 months.

The World Trade Organization (WTO) has downgraded its outlook for global trade this year and next, citing tighter credit market conditions and escalating trade tensions as the main drivers.

Since the ELD hard mandate went into effect, the trucking market has added 4% more truck capacity

There is incredible demand right now for frac sand in the Permian Basin. With the explosive growth in fracking, customers were demanding solutions faster than GE could build them.

In the latest BiTA webinar, we reviewed the state of blockchain with industry experts. Mitch Hixon, Executive Vice President of Membership Engagement, BiTA spoke with Rachel Parker Sealy, Partner, PwC Advisory and Kris Kersey, Director, PwC Advisory, providing insights from PwC’s 2018 Global Blockchain Survey of 600 executives from 15 territories.

The SEC announced that they have settled their lawsuit with the embattled Tesla CEO. Regardless of the outcome, shareholders win.

Under California law, drivers making their way through the Golden State are entitled to a 30-minute meal break for every five hours worked.

FMCSA Administrator Martinez and his officials listened to truck drivers and fleet owners as they asked for more flexibility in the hours of service. The usefulness of split sleeping and breaking up the mandatory 30 minute break were brought up most frequently.

We look at some of the details that make the Panama Canal such a useful tool in the shipping and freight world.

Health and safety are the main concerns as crews begin cleaning up from Hurricane Florence. Debris and hazardous substances have been washed into coastal waterways.

Hurricane Rosa could flood parts of the Southwest U.S. next week. The region has been stuck in a drought, but this will be too much rain at once.

Update: Latest labor action brings attention to drayage drivers as NFI says union is trying to “force” representation on drivers.

In partnership with Reliance Partners …It’s been a wild year, and while at times it may feel more like riding a bull than being “King of the Road,” just hang on a little longer. The times are changing and they’re changing fast.

Discussions around the topic of autonomous trucks would not be complete without it addressing three main concerns – job security of drivers, data privacy, and liability issues.

The US trade deficit in goods widened for the third consecutive month in August as another decline exports was paired with a modest increase in imports.  The total value of traded volume fell for the month, but remains generally strong relative to last year.

“We are genuinely saints and sinners,” said Judge Collier, “and what we see in this white collar crime is the duality.” When the court is asked to consider all the good, it must also consider the laws that he broke again and again over a period of half a decade.

“A well-spec’d long-hood conventional stands out in a crowd,” Kyle Cousins, vice president of operations of Fleenor Bros, said after receiving one of the first W990 model tractor from Kenworth.

On Thursday night at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Kenworth Truck Co. introduced its newest long-hood tractor, the W990.

An unprecedented capacity crunch. Archaic processes badly in need of reinvention. New Uber-like technology entrants bent on cutting out the broker. How do brokers respond, transform and emerge on the other side as stronger competitive forces?

Livestock businesses are looking to secure farms from future hurricane calamities; Elon Musk is accused of fraud by the SEC; global trade expected to grow irrespective of the tariffs war.

European Commission asks for input as it looks at block exemption.

The popular electronic logging device (ELD) exemption for agricultural haulers is up for renewal before Sept. 30, but it’s longer-term fate may hang with Congress’ ability to pass a budget – or at least a Continuing Resolution (CR) to keep the government open beyond Sunday.