World Maritime News

February 22, 2022

Global trade surges past pre-pandemic level Despite a severe blow at the start of the pandemic, the value of goods and services traded internationally is now at record highs. Trade figures reached a new record of $28.5trn in 2021, up 13% on pre-pandemic levels, according to the latest World Trade Outlook from UNCTAD. But while figures remained strong and even accelerated during the fourth quarter, the outlook for the first quarter is not as strong, with trade expected to slow in the first quart

World Maritime News(27)

February 09, 2022

World Maritime News

Redeploying vessels to transpacific trade lane from regional services The increase in capacity on the transpacific alone was larger than total fleet growth in 2021. As a result, carriers are moving tonnage, particularly from intra-Asia services, to fill the gaps. Although fleet capacity increased by 4.5% during 2021, figures from Alphaliner show that shipping companies deployed over a fifth of the 25m teu in service to Asia-North America services from 17.5% at the start of 2021. Read more:Ll

World Maritime News(26)

January 25, 2022

World Maritime News

New indicators for port congestion and supply chain disruption The Federal Reserve Bank of New York launched a new Global Supply Chain Pressure Index designed to provide a “bird’s eye view” of supply chain disruptions. The metric suggests that pressures have peaked, although at a historic high. The index integrates 27 variables covering global transportation costs and country-specific supply chain measures and aims to provide a comprehensive summary of potential disruptions affecting global

World Maritime News(25)

January 12, 2022

World Maritime News

Outlook for supply chain disruption in 2022 Early this year, any expectations of easing supply chain congestion and containerized freight rates are too optimistic as the pandemic continues to exert its influence over the sector. Carriers and their customers began their 2021-22 service contract negotiations several months earlier than usual, seeking stability and predictability in an eastbound trans-Pacific trade roiled by supply chain disruptions. With import volumes in the trans-Pacific proj

World Maritime News(24)

December 22, 2021

World Maritime News

Supply chain disruption risk in 2022 The fundamental structural market vulnerabilities that had led to so much disruption this year remain in place, according to Drewry head of supply chain advisers Philip Damas. On top of this, however, shippers faced four other key risks in the year ahead. Key among these is the chance of another dispute between the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and US west coast port employers when the two parties renegotiate their labor agreement. Despite eff

World Maritime News (23)

December 08, 2021

World Maritime News

Measures against supply chain crisis and issues in LA/LB ports The US President said terminal operators at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach would eliminate fees when truck drivers come into the port to collect containers if they do so at night or on weekends when roads are less congested. However, FMC commissioner Carl Bentzel said the temporary amendment to the PierPass program would not do much to promote 24/7 operations. CMA CGM plans to offer incentives to importers to remove contai

World Maritime News (22)

November 24, 2021

World Maritime News

Outlook for freight rate, supply chain crisis, and US demand for goods Freight rates may be beginning to come off the boil on some trade lanes, but there are warnings that any relief will be relative and that a return to sustainable rates is still some time off. According to Sea-Intelligence chief executive Alan Murphy, to get back to the rate levels seen between 1998-2014 would require a 69% fall from where they are now. Container lines and their largest import customers are beginning trans-P

World Maritime News (21)

November 10, 2021

World Maritime News

Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach charge for lingering containers Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles impose financial penalties on ocean carriers for import containers that dwell too long at marine terminals. They began charging $100-a-day from 1 November for containers that remain nine days or more on a marine terminal if they are scheduled to move by truck and six days or more if moving by rail.But the ports will not begin assessing the penalties until at least 15 November. The ports mak

World Maritime News (20)

October 27, 2021

World Maritime News

Recovery from supply chain disruption requires effective and coordinated actions by port stakeholders. The White House’s intervention to resolve port bottlenecks in Southern California faces steep challenges that will require coordinated action from terminals, truckers, and distribution centers effectively acting as an integrated system. Terminal operators in Los Angeles–Long Beach said 24/7 gate hours were not feasible until retailers and truckers made better use of the each weekday that was

World Maritime News (19)

October 12, 2021

World Maritime News

Changing trend of increasing container spot rates Early October, a dramatic decline in eastbound trans-Pacific spot rates was seen as a temporary relief for US importers caused by production cutbacks in China and a continuous influx of new capacity of chartered ships. Some containerized freight indices show signs that the period of rapid freight rate gains may end. For example, the Shanghai Shipping Exchange figures showed little change in freight rates a week ago, with the Shanghai Containeri

World Maritime News (18)

September 29, 2021

World Maritime News

Regulators’ close watch on supply chain crisis and rate freezes implemented by shipping lines European, US, and Chinese regulatory authorities attended the virtual meeting to address the global supply chain crisis. In a joint statement following the meeting, they focused on sectoral developments since the start of the pandemic, including an analysis of supply and demand and identification of bottlenecks in the ocean-linked supply chain and the cause of service disruptions. They also looked at a

World Maritime News (17)

September 15, 2021

World Maritime News

Green shipping Groups sees methanol bet as a step in the right direction Green Shipping advocates have praised Maersk’s decision to opt for methanol-fueled ships, saying that the fuel has significant advantages over its rivals. On the other hand, classification societies have warned it will be hard for Maersk and other methanol adopters to source enough renewable supply, which is key to making the fuel carbon-neutral. To get enough renewable methanol to run its eight new container ships, Maers