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Crippling duty on Chinese chassis upheld in final ruling

The US Commerce Department has reaffirmed a large antidumping duty on Chinese-made chassis in a final determination that will impact the transportation of international and domestic containers.

Fuel shortages further tighten Southeast truck capacity

Shippers moving goods to and from the Southeast may expect further disruptions in service as fuel shortages linger, pushing more freight to the spot market.

Shippers’ shift to integrated services will last post-pandemic: Maersk

Maersk says its integrated logistics strategy cuts out the boom-and-bust cycles that characterize container shipping and brings greater reliability to a notoriously unreliable supply chain.

Optimal Dynamics lands big investment for fleet decision making

Optimal Dynamics, a technology provider that helps truckload fleets optimize the deployment of their assets, has landed a large early-stage funding round led by well-regarded venture firm Bessemer.

SeaLand adds Wilmington call to tap reefer import surge

Sealand Marine will add a stop in Wilmington on its Central American service beginning in June, adding more connections with Panama and introducing new services between North Carolina and Costa Rica.

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Trans-Pac contracts leave shippers paying more, less ‘free time’

Midsize shippers say securing sufficient vessel space for their increased imports is more important than the higher freight rates in this year’s eastbound trans-Pacific service contract negotiations.

Asian container shortage set to intensify into May

The difficulties in sourcing container equipment in Asia are intensifying, with unrelenting US import demand and choked logistics chains continuing to slow the turnaround of boxes.

Memphis shippers ask STB to intervene on intermodal congestion

A group of Memphis shippers and truckers want the US Surface Transportation Board to instruct railroads to stop charging storage fees until a chassis shortage is resolved.

US Gulf ports eyeing inland intermodal as Asian import share increases

A new all-water service from Asia will boost the volume of imports flowing into the US Gulf Coast amid an ongoing boom in regional import distribution capacity.

New funding, leadership to fuel Roadrunner Freight

The asset-light, long-haul LTL carrier Roadrunner Freight is pursuing 'enterprise’ shippers as well as 3PLs as it re-engineers its network while focusing on service quality and operating margins.

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The pricing data found here allows shippers and transport providers to more accurately benchmark and forecast for their supply chains. The various spot prices and indices are collected from third-party sources and updated weekly, monthly and quarterly, depending on the data set.

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Maritime News

Shippers’ shift to integrated services will last post-pandemic: Maersk

Disrupted shipping services are encouraging cargo owners re-evaluate their contractual relationships with carriers. Photo credit: Shutterstock

Maersk says its integrated logistics strategy cuts out the boom-and-bust cycles that characterize container shipping and brings greater reliability to a notoriously unreliable supply chain.

Demand, rates drive Hapag-Lloyd to $1.45 billion Q1 net profit

It was a solid start to the year for Hapag-Lloyd, and a highly profitable year lies ahead for the German carrier. Photo credit: Shutterstock.com.

The market outlook may be uncertain, but carrier profitability has never been clearer, with Hapag-Lloyd more profitable in the first quarter of this year than in all of 2020.

ONE latest carrier to lean on Kontainers for instant rate tool

Kontainers provides shipping lines and logistics providers with the ability to instantly quote and book freight online, a tool now offered by most of the world's top container lines. Photo credit: Shutterstock.com.

The list of container lines able to quote rates and accept bookings through their websites has expanded over the past year, with Singapore-based Ocean Network Express now giving shippers and forwarders such tools.

Maersk signals next logistics acquisition will be billion-dollar deal

Maersk CEO Soren Skou addresses investors from the Copenhagen headquarters during the group’s virtual capital markets day. Photo credit: Maersk

Maersk’s integrated logistics strategy is gathering momentum, the carrier says, as greater volume from its top 200 customers is locked into end-to-end multiyear contracts.

Trucking News

Trucking Logistics

Crippling duty on Chinese chassis upheld in final ruling

The antidumping and countervailing duties essentially take the Chinese out as an option for purchasing new chassis amid an equipment shortage in key US port and rail cities. Photo credit: Tiffany Blane/Flickr.

The US Commerce Department has reaffirmed a large antidumping duty on Chinese-made chassis in a final determination that will impact the transportation of international and domestic containers.

Fuel shortages further tighten Southeast truck capacity

Southeastern fuel shortages tightened truckload capacity even further a week after a truck inspection blitz. Photo credit: Shutterstock.com.

Shippers moving goods to and from the Southeast may expect further disruptions in service as fuel shortages linger, pushing more freight to the spot market.

Optimal Dynamics lands big investment for fleet decision making

Optimal Dynamics contends that truckload and dedicated fleets rely too much on optimization built around known constraints and not enough around the ability to adapt to unknown variables. Photo credit: Shutterstock.com.

Optimal Dynamics, a technology provider that helps truckload fleets optimize the deployment of their assets, has landed a large early-stage funding round led by well-regarded venture firm Bessemer.

sennder consolidates European network with Dutch broker acquisition

sennder has consolidated a number of European brokers to create a digitally-oriented freight platform connecting carriers with shippers. Photo credit: Shutterstock.com.

European digital freight broker sennder has continued its acquisition activity by buying a Dutch dedicated fleet broker to add to its growing network.

Port News

SeaLand adds Wilmington call to tap reefer import surge

SeaLand Marine has added Wilmington to its NAE service with Latin America with the first stop in North Carolina in June. Photo credit: North Carolina State Ports Authority.

Sealand Marine will add a stop in Wilmington on its Central American service beginning in June, adding more connections with Panama and introducing new services between North Carolina and Costa Rica.

NY-NJ truck groups quit port task force over empty container woes

The difficulties in returning empty containers to NY-NJ marine terminals increases costs to motor carriers and is prompting some drivers to leave the industry. Photo credit: Shutterstock.com.

Two major trucking groups in the port of New York and New Jersey said their members’ increasing frustration with empty returns is forcing them to quit a port efficiency task force.

Fresh Indian COVID-19 lockdowns raise risk of cargo slowdowns, congestion

Handling emergency medical supplies (above) has been a top priority for Indian ports amid surging COVID-19 infections across the country. Photo credit: JNPT

Maersk says labor scarcity in India amid COVID-19 lockdowns – particularly truck drivers – has begun to crimp cargo flow out of some port and inland locations even as demand remains relatively steady.

US legislation would focus port grants toward decarbonization

Under a proposed revision of the funding formula,, the set asides for project grants for inland river and small projects would increase from 18 to 25 percent. Photo Credit: Shutterstock.com

New legislation introduced in Congress would make projects that reduce the carbon footprint of port operations eligible for grants within the Maritime Administration’s Port Infrastructure Development Program.

Technology News

Technology

Optimal Dynamics lands big investment for fleet decision making

Optimal Dynamics, a technology provider that helps truckload fleets optimize the deployment of their assets, has landed a large early-stage funding round led by well-regarded venture firm Bessemer.

sennder consolidates European network with Dutch broker acquisition

European digital freight broker sennder has continued its acquisition activity by buying a Dutch dedicated fleet broker to add to its growing network.

Trucker Tools turns to MercuryGate TMS to expand instant booking reach

Trucker Tools has access to a network of 1.3 million drivers through an app it provides free to independent drivers and small fleets. Photo credit: Shutterstock.com.

An integration with transportation software provider MercuryGate connects Trucker Tools to broker users, but also gives it a more direct link to shippers.

ONE latest carrier to lean on Kontainers for instant rate tool

Breakbulk News

Breakbulk

Fluor Q1 earnings in the red as project backlog takes a hit

An iron ore handling plant under construction in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. Credit: Fluor/Business Wire

Project cargo shipper Fluor added a refinery project to its work backlog, but lost a chemicals project during a choppy first quarter as COVID-19-driven delays took a toll.

Backlogs buoy wind turbine manufacturers despite Q1 losses

Vestas wind turbines on a wind farm in Macarthur, Australia. Photo credit: Vestas.

Though posting first-quarter losses, there's no sign of demand relaxing as wind turbine orders expand backlogs for Vestas and GE Renewables.

Hot breakbulk market underlines MPV newbuilding shortfall: Drewry, Toepfer

The BBC Mont Blanc discharging project cargo to barge in the Sea of Okhotsk. Photo credit: BBC Chartering.

Breakbulk freight rates are climbing, but uncertainty about new fuels, ship designs, and the long-term strength of the market are holding back orders for new ships.

MPV/HL charter rates to remain at record highs through June: Toepfer

Project cargo is discharged from a Jumbo heavy-lift ship to barge at the Port of New Orleans. Credit: Port Nola

As cargo demand surges, multipurpose, container, and dry bulk carriers are all competing for tonnage and pushing up vessel charter rates.

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