Breakbulk pop up 640x340 (1) (1) 1.png

Event Pop Up

Supply chain

Events

Breakbulk News

Port News

Transport, Trade and Regulation News

Marine terminals

International ports

Longshore labor

Maritime

Breakbulk Quarterly Intelligence

Breakbulk carriers

Ro/ro cargo

Energy projects

Heavy-haul transport

Project cargo

Trans-Atlantic

Forwarding

Trans-Pacific

Breakbulk ports

North American ports

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper"><p>North American intermodal volume growth this year appears to be on track to exceed the 4.6 percent gain seen in 2013 after traffic rocketed 8.2 percent year-over-year in the second quarter.</p></div>

North American intermodal volume growth this year appears to be on track to exceed the 4.6 percent gain seen in 2013 after traffic rocketed 8.2 percent year-over-year in the second quarter.

<div><p></p><p>North American intermodal volume growth this year appears to be on track to exceed the 4.6 percent gain seen in 2013 after traffic rocketed 8.2 percent year-over-year in the second quarter.</p><p>The intermodal traffic growth rate in the April through June period, the healthiest since early 2011, was driven by the railroads catching up on cargo backlogged during the recent harsh winter, an acceleration of imports through the U.S. West Coast and steady domestic intermodal growth, according to the Intermodal Association of North America.</p><p>The surge in intermodal volume, along with increased carload traffic, has <a>resulted in a sharp deterioration of rail...

North American intermodal volume growth this year appears to be on track to exceed the 4.6 percent gain seen in 2013 after traffic rocketed 8.2 percent year-over-year in the second quarter. The intermodal traffic growth rate in the April through June period, the healthiest since early 2011, was driven by the railroads catching up on cargo backlogged during the recent harsh winter, an acceleration of imports through the U.S. West Coast and steady domestic intermodal growth, according to the Intermodal Association of North America. The surge in intermodal volume, along with increased carload traffic, has resulted in a sharp deterioration of rail service , causing shipper concern that the major railroads won’t be able to handle the peak shipping season in advance of the winter holidays. Intermodal volume in the first half of the year is up 5.5 percent year-over-year, a 0.3 percentage point decrease from the growth seen in the same period last year. “International volume growth in the (second quarter) may slow in the third quarter. Import volume gains far outstripped still-tepid consumer demand,” IANA said in its second quarter report. “This lent support to many reports and surveys where shippers noted plans to build inventory ahead of potential labor disruption.” International intermodal volume jumped 9.6 percent year-over-year in the second quarter, as shippers accelerated imports through U.S. West Coast port ahead of the July 1 expiration of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union contract. The union and waterfront employers, which restart negotiations today , have jointly pledged to “keep cargo moving” even though the six-year contract has expired and there is no contract extension. “Whatever happens in (the third quarter), longer-term international gains will likely continue as the economy grows,” IANA said. “And international is slowly inching closer to its pre-recession peak.” IANA said domestic intermodal growth’s 6.9 percent growth in second quarter was “likely a more reliable indicator” of long-term prospects. For the first time in many quarters, domestic intermodal growth was outpaced by international intermodal gains. Still, tightening truck capacity — albeit a slight loosening occurred in the second quarter as seasonal demand weakened — suggests the steady conversion of highway loads to rail will continue. Intermodal marketing companies tapped a smaller share of the intermodal growth in the second quarter, seeing their volume rise only 2.4 percent, IANA said. IMCs are generally more focused in domestic intermodal transport, although they likely gained some volume through the transloading of imports into 53-foot containers. J.B. Hunt, the largest U.S. IMC, recently told investors during a second-quarter earnings call that a reduction in intermodal rail service cost them loads.The Lowell, Arkansas-based company has lowered its 2014 intermodal growth projects to 7 to 10 percent from 10 to 14 percent. IMCs saw their highway volume slip 0.5 percent year-over-year but leap 11.2 percent on a sequential basis, suggesting the sector might be poised for growth in the third quarter, IANA said. “The big question will be whether there is sufficient truck capacity for IMCs to grow their highway segment,” IANA said. The IMCs saw on average better intermodal and truck pricing in the second quarter; tightening truck capacity is allowing motor carriers to raise their rates, and Class I railroads and IMCs to follow suit. The average revenue per intermodal load rose 6 percent year-over-over to $2,884 in the second quarter, while the average revenue per highway load jumped 16.3 percent to $1,655. “As rail networks improve service following the winter challenge, this should provide IMCs with an oppor&shy;tunity to boost intermodal volume growth above its recent pace,” IANA said. “In the highway sector, on the other hand, it is likely that trucking capacity will remain tight, making recovery in highway growth more challenging for IMCs.” Contact Mark Szakonyi at mszakonyi@joc.com and follow him on Twitter: @szakonyi_joc .

Intermodal providers

Intermodal traffic on track to outpace 2013 growth, IANA says

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper"><p>The feeling that an arms race for bigger ships and a rush for alternative fuels has overtaken purely rational decision making is strong, writes Jeremy Masters.</p></div>

The feeling that an arms race for bigger ships and a rush for alternative fuels has overtaken purely rational decision making is strong, writes Jeremy Masters.

Feature image

<div class="phx-topic"><p>If you look at Alphaliner’s data on the cellular newbuilding order book, there are some striking numbers at both ends of the spectrum. </p><p>The most obvious place to start is the 18,000 to 24,000-TEU range because that is where the biggest impacts are made in overall capacity injection, and there are multiple knock-on effects through cascading. </p><p>According to Alphaliner in December, the total TEUs on order in the 18,000 to 24,000-TEU range as a percentage of the existing fleet size was a staggering 81%.  </p><div class="wrapper-narrow float-right-element"><img src="/images/phoenix/6156554_0.1.jpg"></img></div><p>If we look at where 18,000 to 24,000-TEU ships are deployed today, based on the capability to handle the vessels, the biggest concentration by far is in the Far East to North Europe and Mediterranean lanes. Given that the trade is already tending to an oversupply position, even just upgrading existing loops is going to severely test the limits of absorption. A return to Suez routing – and thus less ships required for the same weekly services – would seem to guarantee a severe overhang of capacity. </p><p>Given this reality, some of the carriers’ options are: </p><p>1.	Tying up whole strings of expensive high-spec ships versus tinkering with blank sailings. This is a tough call, but the economics stack up if the supply/demand position moves enough in favor of the carriers and rates can be significantly increased. </p><p>2.	Retaining some loops around the Cape of Good Hope is a justifiable reaction to an unpredictable Middle East situation and would indeed be welcomed by a portion of clients not wishing to be caught with all their fish in the wrong basket. </p><p>3.	Super slow-steaming is an option, but of course this will extend transit times and has the potential to create competitive problems if it is not universally applied. Ironically, a reopening of the Suez routing would allow carriers to test the limits on slow-steaming without extending clients’ transit times. </p><p>4.	Scrapping is sometimes touted by carrier executives as one of the key cures for overcapacity. But the reality is that the oldest ships are in the smaller sizes, thus even if they are scrapped, the impact will not be great unless it’s on a very big scale, and those size ships are currently in great demand.  </p><p>Almost 1.3 million TEUs in capacity for ultra-large container ships was on order in 2025, according to Sea-web, a sister product of the <i>Journal of Commerce</i> within S&amp;P Global. </p><h3>‘Arms race’ for bigger ships? </h3><p>Of the options above, pulling full strings of large ships is clearly the most radical and impactful, but may be sidelined because it’s difficult to explain internally, and externally could provoke a barrage of complaint and regulatory investigation. </p><p>As it is likely that the other measures plus some blank sailings simply will not be enough to steer supply down to demand, the next area of attention will be expanding the number of trades where we see 18,000-plus TEU ships. Mediterranean Shipping Co.’s (MSC) West Africa Express is instructive because it serves two new areas MSC has opened for big ships — West Africa and India.  </p><div class="wrapper-narrow"><dynamic-object type="jocchartid" resource-id="83f8b939-db16-47a4-b70a-8715aaf729ec"></dynamic-object></div><p>West Africa has four ports on that service, but India has only one, Vizhinjam. But there is connectivity at Vizhinjam to both local feeders and other deep-sea services (hub-and-spoke) where the spokes can be short and long.  </p><p>Given that there are several geographies like India where there are only a small number of ports able to take the very biggest ships, it could well be that the surplus of big ships creates more hub-and-spoke systems as carriers push these ships into more trades and the limited number of ports that can handle them. These may not initially be the 24,000-TEU ships which would be natural to use to upgrade European services (even if it means having fewer services), but there will be a cascading of capacity and thus a desire to deploy bigger ships in more places. </p><p>If you are a port or port operator in a region where there are size constraints, there has never been a better time to positively differentiate yourself by upgrading or finding green field sites that can accommodate the biggest ships.  </p><p>The feeling that an arms race in the bigger sizes and a rush for alternative fuels has overtaken purely rational decision making is strong. That is reinforced by looking at the smaller-size ships which have been in very heavy demand, so one might expect strong newbuild ordering.  </p><p>Alphaliner reported in December that the order book as a percentage of existing capacity for 4,000 to 5,099-TEU ships was 10.4%, and for 5,100 to 7,499-TEU ships was   7.3%. This has gone up quite a bit in recent months, but is still relatively sane.  </p><p>If there is a disconnect today with freight markets, it’s not as widely advertised in the charter market, but in the newbuild market. </p><p><i>Jeremy Masters is managing director of Shipping Masters. Contact him at </i><a href="mailto:jeremy@shippingmastershk.com"><i>jeremy@shippingmastershk.com.</i></a></p></div>

If you look at Alphaliner’s data on the cellular newbuilding order book, there are some striking numbers at both ends of the spectrum. The most obvious place to start is the 18,000 to 24,000-TEU range because that is where the biggest impacts are made in overall capacity injection, and there are multiple knock-on effects through cascading. According to Alphaliner in December, the total TEUs on order in the 18,000 to 24,000-TEU range as a percentage of the existing fleet size was a staggering 81%. If we look at where 18,000 to 24,000-TEU ships are deployed today, based on the capability to handle the vessels, the biggest concentration by far is in the Far East to North Europe and Mediterranean lanes. Given that the trade is already tending to an oversupply position, even just upgrading existing loops is going to severely test the limits of absorption. A return to Suez routing – and thus less ships required for the same weekly services – would seem to guarantee a severe overhang of capacity. Given this reality, some of the carriers’ options are: 1. Tying up whole strings of expensive high-spec ships versus tinkering with blank sailings. This is a tough call, but the economics stack up if the supply/demand position moves enough in favor of the carriers and rates can be significantly increased. 2. Retaining some loops around the Cape of Good Hope is a justifiable reaction to an unpredictable Middle East situation and would indeed be welcomed by a portion of clients not wishing to be caught with all their fish in the wrong basket. 3. Super slow-steaming is an option, but of course this will extend transit times and has the potential to create competitive problems if it is not universally applied. Ironically, a reopening of the Suez routing would allow carriers to test the limits on slow-steaming without extending clients’ transit times. 4. Scrapping is sometimes touted by carrier executives as one of the key cures for overcapacity. But the reality is that the oldest ships are in the smaller sizes, thus even if they are scrapped, the impact will not be great unless it’s on a very big scale, and those size ships are currently in great demand. Almost 1.3 million TEUs in capacity for ultra-large container ships was on order in 2025, according to Sea-web, a sister product of the Journal of Commerce within S&P Global. ‘Arms race’ for bigger ships? Of the options above, pulling full strings of large ships is clearly the most radical and impactful, but may be sidelined because it’s difficult to explain internally, and externally could provoke a barrage of complaint and regulatory investigation. As it is likely that the other measures plus some blank sailings simply will not be enough to steer supply down to demand, the next area of attention will be expanding the number of trades where we see 18,000-plus TEU ships. Mediterranean Shipping Co.’s (MSC) West Africa Express is instructive because it serves two new areas MSC has opened for big ships — West Africa and India. West Africa has four ports on that service, but India has only one, Vizhinjam. But there is connectivity at Vizhinjam to both local feeders and other deep-sea services (hub-and-spoke) where the spokes can be short and long. Given that there are several geographies like India where there are only a small number of ports able to take the very biggest ships, it could well be that the surplus of big ships creates more hub-and-spoke systems as carriers push these ships into more trades and the limited number of ports that can handle them. These may not initially be the 24,000-TEU ships which would be natural to use to upgrade European services (even if it means having fewer services), but there will be a cascading of capacity and thus a desire to deploy bigger ships in more places. If you are a port or port operator in a region where there are size constraints, there has never been a better time to positively differentiate yourself by upgrading or finding green field sites that can accommodate the biggest ships. The feeling that an arms race in the bigger sizes and a rush for alternative fuels has overtaken purely rational decision making is strong. That is reinforced by looking at the smaller-size ships which have been in very heavy demand, so one might expect strong newbuild ordering. Alphaliner reported in December that the order book as a percentage of existing capacity for 4,000 to 5,099-TEU ships was 10.4%, and for 5,100 to 7,499-TEU ships was 7.3%. This has gone up quite a bit in recent months, but is still relatively sane. If there is a disconnect today with freight markets, it’s not as widely advertised in the charter market, but in the newbuild market. Jeremy Masters is managing director of Shipping Masters. Contact him at jeremy@shippingmastershk.com.

Container lines

Could the ocean carrier order book be a matter of ‘irrational exuberance’?

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper"><p>The carrier consortium released details of its new network showing a slight uptick in port calls primarily from Southeast Asia and small rotation changes on the US East Coast.</p></div>

The carrier consortium released details of its new network showing a slight uptick in port calls primarily from Southeast Asia and small rotation changes on the US East Coast.

<div class="phx-topic"><p>Carriers in the Ocean Alliance will be offering North American shippers more connections from Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent as part of their 2026 network. Ocean Alliance carriers will also make their first return to the Port of Jacksonville in seven years with a new call on their Gulf Coast service. </p><p>CMA CGM, Cosco Shipping and Evergreen Marine each announced this week the launch of the Ocean Alliance’s “Day 10” product covering 14 services to the North American West Coast and eight to the East Coast. The new network will go into effect as of April. </p><p>While the number of services to North America did not change compared with the alliance’s 2025 network, the 2026 network to and from the US and Canada does feature new port rotations that highlight the ongoing shift of US importers away from China. </p><p>The Port of Haiphong will see the biggest increase in North American connectivity. Calls to the Vietnamese port, where <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/cma-cgm-signs-deal-to-develop-600-million-haiphong-terminal-complex-6012131">CMA CGM plans to build a $600 million terminal</a>, will be added to four trans-Pacific services to North America, according to Cosco’s Day 10 schedule. </p><p>On the West Coast, those services include the Pacific Southwest 9 (PSW9) service to Long Beach and the Pacific Northwest 2 (PNW2) to the ports of Vancouver and Seattle. </p><p>Haiphong remains a call for Ocean Alliance’s PSW1 service into Long Beach. However, another Long Beach service, PSW10, that previously called Haiphong as part of the 2025 network, appears to have been dropped in favor of the Port of Laem Chabang in Thailand. Ocean Alliance’s 2025 network previously had no regular service between Southeast Asia and the Pacific Northwest. </p><p>On the East Coast, Haiphong will be added as a call to the USEC3 and 5 services. Haiphong was previously a call only on the Ocean Alliance’s USEC8 service into Norfolk as of 2025, but that call has been replaced with Vietnam’s Cai Mep as of the 2026 network.  </p><p>Laem Chabang will also be on the new rotation for the PSW7 service into Los Angeles. The Laem Chabang call appears to have replaced a call to Malaysia’s Port Klang featured on the 2025 network. </p><p>The transshipment port of Colombo in Sri Lanka will also be added to the USEC5 service that makes first call at Savannah, adding a second Ocean Alliance service from the Indian subcontinent along with the current USEC3 service rotation. </p><p>In addition, Ocean Alliance added Taiwan’s Kaohsiung as a backhaul on three West Coast trans-Pacific services, along with a westbound call to South Korea’s Busan. </p><p>Chinese port rotations will also see small changes in the 2026 network. The southern China port of Yangpu, across the Beibu Gulf from Haiphong, will be added to the front-haul for the PSW9 and PNW2 services to the West Coast. Tianjin will also be added to the PSW5 service, while Hong Kong will be added to the PNW2 service.</p><p>China’s Xiamen port will get a second service with a new call on the USEC4 service, adding to an existing call on the USEC2 service. But a previous Xiamen call on the USEC5 appears to have been dropped in favor of the new Haiphong call. </p><p>Amid the ongoing sourcing shift away from China, container volumes from Southeast Asia to the US saw year-over-year gains in every month last year, with 10 of those months seeing double-digit gains, according to PIERS, a sister product of the <i>Journal of Commerce</i> within S&amp;P Global.</p><div class="wrapper-narrow"><dynamic-object type="jocchartid" resource-id="021af9b6-860f-45a6-99eb-549dc05cabfe"></dynamic-object></div><h3>Jacksonville gets Far East service</h3><p>Jacksonville this year will be on the rotation for Ocean Alliance’s USEC6 service that covers the US Gulf Coast. The USEC6 previously featured a call to New Orleans, but it’s not included in the 2026 network. </p><p>While Jacksonville already has Asia services through the Premier Alliance, Mediterranean Shipping Co. and Zim Integrated Shipping, the <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/jaxport-optimistic-on-growth-despite-service-loss-5236112">Ocean Alliance has not been a regular caller to the port since 2019</a> when it dropped Jacksonville on the same service. </p><p>Other US rotation changes include dropping Charleston from the USEC4 service, while keeping the port on rotation for three other Ocean Alliance services. The USEC4 will replace the Charleston call with a call to Baltimore, but that port will be dropped from the USEC5 service. </p><p><i>Contact Michael Angell at </i><a href="mailto:michael.angell@spglobal.com"><i>michael.angell@spglobal.com</i></a>.</p></div>

Carriers in the Ocean Alliance will be offering North American shippers more connections from Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent as part of their 2026 network. Ocean Alliance carriers will also make their first return to the Port of Jacksonville in seven years with a new call on their Gulf Coast service. CMA CGM, Cosco Shipping and Evergreen Marine each announced this week the launch of the Ocean Alliance’s “Day 10” product covering 14 services to the North American West Coast and eight to the East Coast. The new network will go into effect as of April. While the number of services to North America did not change compared with the alliance’s 2025 network, the 2026 network to and from the US and Canada does feature new port rotations that highlight the ongoing shift of US importers away from China. The Port of Haiphong will see the biggest increase in North American connectivity. Calls to the Vietnamese port, where CMA CGM plans to build a $600 million terminal , will be added to four trans-Pacific services to North America, according to Cosco’s Day 10 schedule. On the West Coast, those services include the Pacific Southwest 9 (PSW9) service to Long Beach and the Pacific Northwest 2 (PNW2) to the ports of Vancouver and Seattle. Haiphong remains a call for Ocean Alliance’s PSW1 service into Long Beach. However, another Long Beach service, PSW10, that previously called Haiphong as part of the 2025 network, appears to have been dropped in favor of the Port of Laem Chabang in Thailand. Ocean Alliance’s 2025 network previously had no regular service between Southeast Asia and the Pacific Northwest. On the East Coast, Haiphong will be added as a call to the USEC3 and 5 services. Haiphong was previously a call only on the Ocean Alliance’s USEC8 service into Norfolk as of 2025, but that call has been replaced with Vietnam’s Cai Mep as of the 2026 network. Laem Chabang will also be on the new rotation for the PSW7 service into Los Angeles. The Laem Chabang call appears to have replaced a call to Malaysia’s Port Klang featured on the 2025 network. The transshipment port of Colombo in Sri Lanka will also be added to the USEC5 service that makes first call at Savannah, adding a second Ocean Alliance service from the Indian subcontinent along with the current USEC3 service rotation. In addition, Ocean Alliance added Taiwan’s Kaohsiung as a backhaul on three West Coast trans-Pacific services, along with a westbound call to South Korea’s Busan. Chinese port rotations will also see small changes in the 2026 network. The southern China port of Yangpu, across the Beibu Gulf from Haiphong, will be added to the front-haul for the PSW9 and PNW2 services to the West Coast. Tianjin will also be added to the PSW5 service, while Hong Kong will be added to the PNW2 service. China’s Xiamen port will get a second service with a new call on the USEC4 service, adding to an existing call on the USEC2 service. But a previous Xiamen call on the USEC5 appears to have been dropped in favor of the new Haiphong call. Amid the ongoing sourcing shift away from China, container volumes from Southeast Asia to the US saw year-over-year gains in every month last year, with 10 of those months seeing double-digit gains, according to PIERS, a sister product of the Journal of Commerce within S&P Global. Jacksonville gets Far East service Jacksonville this year will be on the rotation for Ocean Alliance’s USEC6 service that covers the US Gulf Coast. The USEC6 previously featured a call to New Orleans, but it’s not included in the 2026 network. While Jacksonville already has Asia services through the Premier Alliance, Mediterranean Shipping Co. and Zim Integrated Shipping, the Ocean Alliance has not been a regular caller to the port since 2019 when it dropped Jacksonville on the same service. Other US rotation changes include dropping Charleston from the USEC4 service, while keeping the port on rotation for three other Ocean Alliance services. The USEC4 will replace the Charleston call with a call to Baltimore, but that port will be dropped from the USEC5 service. Contact Michael Angell at michael.angell@spglobal.com .

Ocean Alliance adding Vietnam calls to North America for 2026

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper"><p>Container flows at the railroad’s primary Appliance Park terminal slowed considerably in December and into January after it implemented a new appointment system for truck drivers to pick up import boxes.</p></div>

Container flows at the railroad’s primary Appliance Park terminal slowed considerably in December and into January after it implemented a new appointment system for truck drivers to pick up import boxes.

<div class="phx-topic"><p>Norfolk Southern Railway (NS) is reopening an idled terminal in Louisville, giving the railroad a second facility to support what is now a congested market.   </p><p>The Buechel Intermodal Facility will reopen on Jan. 26 as NS battles long truck turn times and congestion at Appliance Park, its primary terminal in Louisville. Appliance largely replaced the older Buechel facility that was built nearly 50 years ago. </p><p>Buechel briefly reopened in 2021 during the pandemic-related freight surge but was idled again as volumes cooled off. But container flows in Appliance Park slowed considerably in December and into January after Norfolk Southern implemented a new appointment system for truck drivers to pick up import boxes, which also coincided with the holidays and some construction on the property. Conditions at Appliance <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/drivers-battling-delays-at-norfolk-southern-terminal-in-louisville-6150589">deteriorated into early January,</a> with some drivers complaining of waits up to six hours. </p><p>“Right now, we target approximately 20 to 25 appointments per hour at Appliance Park and with the Buechel facility up and running, we’ll basically double the number of appointments available to drivers,” a NS spokesperson told the <i>Journal of Commerce</i>. </p><h2>NS says dwells improving </h2><p>The railroad said drive dwell times have dropped to about 30 minutes on average in the last 10 days, which coincides with NS opening a temporary satellite lot at a Louisville depot owned by drayage provider ContainerPort Group. </p><p>Once Buechel is re-opened, Norfolk Southern will restructure how international containers are handled in Louisville. All import loads will be taken to Buechel and put into container stacks, while all exports will be dropped off at Appliance Park. The move will allow ground crews to concentrate on a single direction for container flow at each terminal. </p><p>NS will conduct a soft launch this weekend before officially segmenting inbound and outbound ocean containers on Monday. </p><p>The Appliance Park and Buechel terminals are approximately three miles from one another, which Norfolk Southern said should make it relatively easy for truck drivers to perform a dual mission – dropping off an export container and then picking up an import box during the same trip. </p><p><i>Contact Ari Ashe at </i><a href="ari.ashe@spglobal.com "><i>ari.ashe@spglobal.com</i></a>.</p></div>

Norfolk Southern Railway (NS) is reopening an idled terminal in Louisville, giving the railroad a second facility to support what is now a congested market. The Buechel Intermodal Facility will reopen on Jan. 26 as NS battles long truck turn times and congestion at Appliance Park, its primary terminal in Louisville. Appliance largely replaced the older Buechel facility that was built nearly 50 years ago. Buechel briefly reopened in 2021 during the pandemic-related freight surge but was idled again as volumes cooled off. But container flows in Appliance Park slowed considerably in December and into January after Norfolk Southern implemented a new appointment system for truck drivers to pick up import boxes, which also coincided with the holidays and some construction on the property. Conditions at Appliance deteriorated into early January, with some drivers complaining of waits up to six hours. “Right now, we target approximately 20 to 25 appointments per hour at Appliance Park and with the Buechel facility up and running, we’ll basically double the number of appointments available to drivers,” a NS spokesperson told the Journal of Commerce. NS says dwells improving The railroad said drive dwell times have dropped to about 30 minutes on average in the last 10 days, which coincides with NS opening a temporary satellite lot at a Louisville depot owned by drayage provider ContainerPort Group. Once Buechel is re-opened, Norfolk Southern will restructure how international containers are handled in Louisville. All import loads will be taken to Buechel and put into container stacks, while all exports will be dropped off at Appliance Park. The move will allow ground crews to concentrate on a single direction for container flow at each terminal. NS will conduct a soft launch this weekend before officially segmenting inbound and outbound ocean containers on Monday. The Appliance Park and Buechel terminals are approximately three miles from one another, which Norfolk Southern said should make it relatively easy for truck drivers to perform a dual mission – dropping off an export container and then picking up an import box during the same trip. Contact Ari Ashe at ari.ashe@spglobal.com .

Norfolk Southern reopening second terminal in congested Louisville

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper"><p>The deal will create a company with more than $5 billion in revenue across truckload brokerage, managed transportation services, and port-related offerings.</p></div>

The deal will create a company with more than $5 billion in revenue across truckload brokerage, managed transportation services, and port-related offerings.

<div class="phx-topic"><p>Freight broker Echo Global Logistics has acquired third-party logistics provider and drayage specialist ITS Logistics, the companies announced Wednesday.  </p><p>The deal, terms of which were not disclosed, gives privately held Echo, the fifth-largest brokerage in the US, a major network of drayage, intermodal and drop trailer assets. </p><p>The combined entity would create a company with $5.4 billion in revenue, Echo said in a statement. The deal is expected to close in the first half of this year. </p><p>“This acquisition represents a meaningful strategic opportunity for Echo and our customers,” Echo CEO Doug Waggoner said, calling ITS’ products “highly differentiated.” </p><p>“By applying Echo’s proprietary technology, advanced analytics, and growing AI capabilities to the ITS solution set, we will strengthen our value proposition for a broader range of customers,” Waggoner added. </p><p>Founded in 1999, ITS has grown to be a top 10 provider of drayage services. </p><p>“Echo's truckload brokerage scale, managed transportation platform, strong cross-border capabilities, and broad multimodal offering — combined with its technology platform and AI-driven innovation — will enable us to elevate our service offerings and provide enhanced value to our customers,” ITS CEO Scott Pruneau said in the statement. </p><p>Echo, which was taken private in 2021, said ITS will continue operating with its existing leadership team and customer-facing structure, but will hook into Echo’s technology platform, carrier network, and enterprise commercial capabilities. </p><p>ITS also has a robust truckload brokerage and dedicated truckload model that would integrate with Echo’s truckload and intermodal brokerage businesses. </p><p>The acquisition represents Chicago-based Echo’s biggest acquisition since its $420 million purchase of fellow broker Command Transportation in 2015. Its most recent acquisition came in August, when it bought California-based 3PL FreightSaver for an undisclosed amount. </p><p><i>Contact Eric Johnson at </i><a href="mailto:eric.johnson@spglobal.com"><i>eric.johnson@spglobal.com</i></a>.</p></div>

Freight broker Echo Global Logistics has acquired third-party logistics provider and drayage specialist ITS Logistics, the companies announced Wednesday. The deal, terms of which were not disclosed, gives privately held Echo, the fifth-largest brokerage in the US, a major network of drayage, intermodal and drop trailer assets. The combined entity would create a company with $5.4 billion in revenue, Echo said in a statement. The deal is expected to close in the first half of this year. “This acquisition represents a meaningful strategic opportunity for Echo and our customers,” Echo CEO Doug Waggoner said, calling ITS’ products “highly differentiated.” “By applying Echo’s proprietary technology, advanced analytics, and growing AI capabilities to the ITS solution set, we will strengthen our value proposition for a broader range of customers,” Waggoner added. Founded in 1999, ITS has grown to be a top 10 provider of drayage services. “Echo's truckload brokerage scale, managed transportation platform, strong cross-border capabilities, and broad multimodal offering — combined with its technology platform and AI-driven innovation — will enable us to elevate our service offerings and provide enhanced value to our customers,” ITS CEO Scott Pruneau said in the statement. Echo, which was taken private in 2021, said ITS will continue operating with its existing leadership team and customer-facing structure, but will hook into Echo’s technology platform, carrier network, and enterprise commercial capabilities. ITS also has a robust truckload brokerage and dedicated truckload model that would integrate with Echo’s truckload and intermodal brokerage businesses. The acquisition represents Chicago-based Echo’s biggest acquisition since its $420 million purchase of fellow broker Command Transportation in 2015. Its most recent acquisition came in August, when it bought California-based 3PL FreightSaver for an undisclosed amount. Contact Eric Johnson at eric.johnson@spglobal.com .

Surface

Drayage

Truck brokers

Broker Echo buys ITS Logistics to build drayage, intermodal presence

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper"><p>Shippers should heed signs that ocean carriers have managed to keep the decline in Asia imports from sinking the market, reflecting a modicum of control and price restraint.</p></div>

Shippers should heed signs that ocean carriers have managed to keep the decline in Asia imports from sinking the market, reflecting a modicum of control and price restraint.

<div class="phx-topic"><p>It is a buyer’s market during this annual trans-Pacific service contract cycle, and importers of Asia-sourced goods — particularly smaller shippers — are under some of the strongest C-Suite pressure in years to reduce costs. But shippers should also heed signs that ocean carriers have managed to keep the decline in Asia imports from sinking the market, reflecting a modicum of control and price restraint.  </p><p>A few container line executives privately acknowledge what preliminary contract benchmark readings reflect: The starting point for contract rate levels is lower than during last year’s negotiation cycle. Demand is weaker than a year ago, and capacity is more plentiful as evidenced by the swelling order book.  </p><div class="wrapper-narrow float-right-element"><img src="/images/phoenix/6155716_0.1.jpg"></img></div><p>In the first two rounds of bids in this annual service contract cycle, tendered rates for Asia to the US West Coast were down approximately 25% from levels in January 2025, according to a Xeneta analysis. However, the tendered rates in this cycle have been rising since the beginning of the year, said Emily Stausbøll, senior analyst at Xeneta. </p><p>“We certainly expect that as more US shippers start tendering, they should be saving money compared to last year, but how much depends on shippers’ individual negotiations and whatever happens in the market over the next few months before many of those contracts are finalized,” Stausbøll said.  </p><h3>C-Suite calling  </h3><p>The pressure on logistics managers to cut costs has risen dramatically in less than a year, making it infeasible to simply pass on the additional costs to suppliers and/or suffer weaker margins. The US tariff rate on imports from China more than doubled to 47.5% between January and November 2025, according to the latest available analysis from the Peterson Institute for International Economics.  </p><p>No wonder then that a recent Goldman Sachs survey found that between April and August of last year, surveyed businesses passed 37% of higher tariff costs to consumers and 9% onto suppliers. The companies absorbed the remaining 51%, according to the study released in October.  </p><div class="wrapper-narrow"><dynamic-object type="jocchartid" resource-id="a08410a8-0b00-4c48-9ef6-78b6354f0678"></dynamic-object></div><p>Small and medium-sized importers are ordering only what they know they can sell and taking an even harder look at their own transport costs, said Serkan Kavas, executive vice president for imports at the forwarder MTS Logistics. </p><p>For example, shippers who booked before a general rate increase (GRI) was imposed but didn’t ship until after it was implemented have become more sensitive to the higher transport cost they’ve accrued, and often with one day or less of notice, he said. A cost difference of $50 per TEU matters more now.  </p><p>“It’s all about cost,” Kavas said. “The service reliability has not been too bad. There is an abundance of space. On the carrier side, there is not too much difference to the level of service.”   </p><p>In a down market, in which analysts expect US imports to barely register any growth in 2026 compared with 2025, some ocean carriers are targeting smaller shippers that they would have normally left to forwarders. One of Kavas’ customers, he said, was approached by a major carrier for annual volumes of no more than 1,000 TEUs. </p><h3>Holding the line so far  </h3><p>While volumes are plunging, pricing isn’t. US imports from China in December dropped 22.3% year over year while total volumes from Asia fell 6.1% in the same period, according to PIERS, a sister company of the <i>Journal of Commerce</i> within S&amp;P Global. </p><p>Yet container spot rates, as measured by Drewry, Platts and the Shanghai Shipping Exchange, have shown resilience, rising about 40% since early December. Implementing blank sailings and moderately-sized GRIs while holding the price line on freight-all-kind rates appears to have worked for carriers. </p><p>“Ocean carriers need another catalyst to keep the rates at certain levels, or they will continue to perform blank sailings which they have mastered,” Kavas said. “They are doing this in a very disciplined manner, and considering the number of carriers in the market at the moment, ocean freight rate fluctuations will continue to be present, but I don’t see rates are diving.” </p><div class="wrapper-narrow"><dynamic-object type="jocchartid" resource-id="a2606c91-b30c-4219-b617-9491b44b6af1"></dynamic-object></div><p>Ocean carriers are adjusting further to expectations of reduced demand. Carriers will reduce the available capacity from Asia to North America to 2.5 million TEUs in the first quarter from 2.6 million TEUs in the fourth quarter, according to Xeneta forecasts and an analysis of blanked sailings, including those not announced by carriers.  </p><p>The semblance of carrier control on the trans-Pacific despite weakening volumes should give importers pause amid negotiations on annual contracts, which generally run from May 1 through April. The market may be down, but capacity discipline so far isn’t, and shippers who push too hard on contract rates or are too exposed to spot rates could end up paying if the market turns.  </p><p><i>Contact Mark Szakonyi at </i><a href="https://www.joc.com/article/mark.szakonyi@spglobal.com"><i>mark.szakonyi@spglobal.com</i></a>.</p></div>

It is a buyer’s market during this annual trans-Pacific service contract cycle, and importers of Asia-sourced goods — particularly smaller shippers — are under some of the strongest C-Suite pressure in years to reduce costs. But shippers should also heed signs that ocean carriers have managed to keep the decline in Asia imports from sinking the market, reflecting a modicum of control and price restraint. A few container line executives privately acknowledge what preliminary contract benchmark readings reflect: The starting point for contract rate levels is lower than during last year’s negotiation cycle. Demand is weaker than a year ago, and capacity is more plentiful as evidenced by the swelling order book. In the first two rounds of bids in this annual service contract cycle, tendered rates for Asia to the US West Coast were down approximately 25% from levels in January 2025, according to a Xeneta analysis. However, the tendered rates in this cycle have been rising since the beginning of the year, said Emily Stausbøll, senior analyst at Xeneta. “We certainly expect that as more US shippers start tendering, they should be saving money compared to last year, but how much depends on shippers’ individual negotiations and whatever happens in the market over the next few months before many of those contracts are finalized,” Stausbøll said. C-Suite calling The pressure on logistics managers to cut costs has risen dramatically in less than a year, making it infeasible to simply pass on the additional costs to suppliers and/or suffer weaker margins. The US tariff rate on imports from China more than doubled to 47.5% between January and November 2025, according to the latest available analysis from the Peterson Institute for International Economics. No wonder then that a recent Goldman Sachs survey found that between April and August of last year, surveyed businesses passed 37% of higher tariff costs to consumers and 9% onto suppliers. The companies absorbed the remaining 51%, according to the study released in October. Small and medium-sized importers are ordering only what they know they can sell and taking an even harder look at their own transport costs, said Serkan Kavas, executive vice president for imports at the forwarder MTS Logistics. For example, shippers who booked before a general rate increase (GRI) was imposed but didn’t ship until after it was implemented have become more sensitive to the higher transport cost they’ve accrued, and often with one day or less of notice, he said. A cost difference of $50 per TEU matters more now. “It’s all about cost,” Kavas said. “The service reliability has not been too bad. There is an abundance of space. On the carrier side, there is not too much difference to the level of service.” In a down market, in which analysts expect US imports to barely register any growth in 2026 compared with 2025, some ocean carriers are targeting smaller shippers that they would have normally left to forwarders. One of Kavas’ customers, he said, was approached by a major carrier for annual volumes of no more than 1,000 TEUs. Holding the line so far While volumes are plunging, pricing isn’t. US imports from China in December dropped 22.3% year over year while total volumes from Asia fell 6.1% in the same period, according to PIERS, a sister company of the Journal of Commerce within S&P Global. Yet container spot rates, as measured by Drewry, Platts and the Shanghai Shipping Exchange, have shown resilience, rising about 40% since early December. Implementing blank sailings and moderately-sized GRIs while holding the price line on freight-all-kind rates appears to have worked for carriers. “Ocean carriers need another catalyst to keep the rates at certain levels, or they will continue to perform blank sailings which they have mastered,” Kavas said. “They are doing this in a very disciplined manner, and considering the number of carriers in the market at the moment, ocean freight rate fluctuations will continue to be present, but I don’t see rates are diving.” Ocean carriers are adjusting further to expectations of reduced demand. Carriers will reduce the available capacity from Asia to North America to 2.5 million TEUs in the first quarter from 2.6 million TEUs in the fourth quarter, according to Xeneta forecasts and an analysis of blanked sailings, including those not announced by carriers. The semblance of carrier control on the trans-Pacific despite weakening volumes should give importers pause amid negotiations on annual contracts, which generally run from May 1 through April. The market may be down, but capacity discipline so far isn’t, and shippers who push too hard on contract rates or are too exposed to spot rates could end up paying if the market turns. Contact Mark Szakonyi at  mark.szakonyi@spglobal.com .

Buyer’s market for US importers belies risks in contract talks

Use code GTW595 at checkout and save $900 on first year of an annual Gold subscription!

Upgrade Subscription - Gold Trials

Become a Gold Subscriber and Save!

Arm your team with the most trusted information portal for the international container shipping industry.

Group Subscriptions - Wide Box

Get into a group subscription today

Use code NYW26 at checkout to save 25% on a Silver or Silver Plus annual subscription! 

Subscribe Now - FT to S/SP - Wide Box

NEW YEAR SALE

Use code NYW595 and upgrade to Gold for just $595! Valid for first year of subscription.

Upgrade Subscription - S/SP to Gold - Wide Box

Subscribe today using code NYW26 at checkout and save 25% on a Silver or Silver Plus annual subscription!

Subscribe Now - Anonymous to S/SP - Wide Box

Use code NYW995 at checkout to save $500 on first year of a Gold subscription!

Subscribe Now - FT to Gold - Wide Box

Get into a Gold subscription today and save $500 by using code NYW995 at checkout!

Subscribe Now - Anonymous to Gold - Wide Box

NEW YEAR SALE: Use code NYW26 to save 25% on first year of a Silver or Silver Plus annual subscription!


Subscribe Now - FT to S/SP - Offer Box

Subscribe and Save

NEW YEAR SALE: Subscribe today using code NYW26 at checkout and save 25% on a Silver or Silver Plus annual subscription!

Subscribe Now - Anonymous to S/SP - Offer Box

SUBSCRIBE TODAY

UPGRADE TO GOLD AND SAVE: Use code GTW595 at checkout and save $900 on first year of a Gold subscription!

Upgrade Subscription

NEW YEAR SALE: Get into a Gold subscription today and save $500 by using code NYW995 at checkout!

Subscribe Now - Anonymous to Gold - Offer Box

NEW YEAR SALE: Use code NYW595 and upgrade to Gold for just $595! Valid on first year of subscription.

Upgrade Subscription - S/SP to Gold - Offer Box

NEW YEAR SALE: Use code NYW995 at checkout to save $500 on a Gold subscription!

Subscribe Now - FT to Gold - Offer Box

SUBSCRIBE AND SAVE

Monthly publication providing an editorial deep dive into global supply chain news

Journal of Commerce Magazine - Rectangle Box

Journal of Commerce Magazine

A premium access index of savings using domestic intermodal vs. OTR 

ISI Report - Rectangle Box

Intermodal Savings Index

An in-depth analysis of transport trends in the multipurpose and heavy-lift fleet segment

Breakbulk Report - Rectangle Box

Breakbulk Quarterly

An extensive dashboard of charts organized by trade lane, mode, and topic

Gateway - Rectangle Box

Gateway

Customers scoring their intermodal partners to identify the best service providers

Intermodal Service Scorecard - Rectangle Box

Intermodal Service Scorecard

A premium access outlook critical to shippers and transportation providers

QI Report - Rectangle Box

Quarterly Intelligence

The premier conference for the global container shipping and supply chain community

TPM Conference - Rectangle Box

Attend TPM26

The only editorially independent conference for the breakbulk & project cargo industry

Breakbulk Conference - Rectangle Box

Attend Breakbulk26

The <i>Journal of Commerce’s</i> analysis and coverage of North American and global rail news encompasses Class I railroad, intermodal marketing providers, and supporting drayage and truckload services. Reporting on freight railroad news today, journalists track volume, intermodal freight rates, service levels, precision schedule railroading, transloading, regulation, union labor and network investment at domestic and international intermodal terminals.

International rail

North-American rail

Stay updated with our rail transport news and trends. Journal of Commerce covers intermodal news, and port connectivity news in the container rail transport sector.

Rail News | Journal of Commerce

Rail News

The <i>Journal of Commerce’s</i> surface transport news and analysis focuses on landside transport movement — from railroad news to trucking news — including full load trucking, less-than-truckload (LTL), refrigerated (or reefer) trucking, flatbed and domestic and international intermodal rail, and how it connects with seaports, inland rail hubs, distribution centers and transloading operations. Reporting on the surface transport sector covers the movement of domestic shipments within the United States and international cargoes transported via domestic equipment including trailers and 53-foot containers.

Discover comprehensive trucking news and trends with Journal of Commerce - from trucking LTL to regulation and trucking supply and demand.

Trucking News | Journal of Commerce

Trucking News

Explore the world of ground transport news - from trucks to railroads, intermodal connections, and port ties. Daily insights on US and global shipments.

Latest News

More News & Analysis

Could the ocean carrier order book be a matter of ‘irrational exuberance’?

Ocean Alliance adding Vietnam calls to North America for 2026

Norfolk Southern reopening second terminal in congested Louisville