<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">Limited air cargo capacity is colliding with strengthening demand, as technology product launches compete for space with general cargo and medical equipment. </div>

Limited air cargo capacity is colliding with strengthening demand, as technology product launches compete for space with general cargo and medical equipment.

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<div>Air cargo rates on the China-Europe trade are responding to rising demand as product launches from 5G smartphones to gaming consoles put pressure on already limited capacity.Average spot rates on the Shanghai-North Europe route rose 4.5 percent over last week to a four-month high of $4.20 per kilogram, according to the TAC Index. The rate is now 63 percent above the same week last year. “The market in Asia has now picked up speed again with production ramping up, and we are seeing increasing tonnage for export,” said Edoardo Podestà, COO of air and sea logistics at Dachser. “With passenger...

Air cargo rates on the China-Europe trade are responding to rising demand as product launches from 5G smartphones to gaming consoles put pressure on already limited capacity. Average spot rates on the Shanghai-North Europe route rose 4.5 percent over last week to a four-month high of $4.20 per kilogram, according to the TAC Index. The rate is now 63 percent above the same week last year. “The market in Asia has now picked up speed again with production ramping up, and we are seeing increasing tonnage for export,” said Edoardo Podestà, COO of air and sea logistics at Dachser. “With passenger flights not likely to resume to pre-coronavirus levels, we can expect a lively peak season this year.” The new products are competing for space with general air cargo and increasing amounts of personal protective equipment (PPE) as COVID-19 infections spike across Europe. More than half the available cargo capacity on the China-Europe trade is typically provided by the belly space in passenger planes, but travel bans have brought long-haul travel to a standstill. With capacity so tight, there are signs of growing frustration at the lack of information surrounding the product launches as forwarders try to find spare capacity to secure shipments for their customers. Click to enlarge . “It's surprising how little we know about what big guys like Apple, Samsung, Sony are doing, when they are launching, how they are launching, what capacity they will need,” a forwarder said at the Xeneta Summit this week. Forwarders have been scrambling to lock in cargo capacity, with Dachser adding peak season charters to connect Asia and Europe to its weekly Frankfurt-Shanghai charter rotations that began this week for the autumn peak. Weekly charters have also been provided on the Hong Kong-Frankfurt route, and the Frankfurt-Chicago rotation service. Most of the global service providers have contracted freighter operators and cargo charter services to enable them to control capacity during the anticipated peak season demand on the Asia-Europe and trans-Pacific trades. ‘Toxic’ spot for buyers of air freight The high demand and absence of capacity is pushing up load factors. Niall van de Wouw, managing director of CLIVE Data Services, said while that may be encouraging news for airlines, shippers and forwarders were being hit by higher air freight costs. “Uncertainty over how the market will develop alongside very high load factors is a toxic combination for the buyers of air freight capacity,” he said in an air cargo update this week. “These remain uncertain times, but with more optimism in the market for October and November volume, the question is: How far can the recovery go?” Van de Wouw said if the strong demand continued, and shippers were prepared to pay, there could be a resurgence in passenger planes being deployed to move freight. It only makes economic sense to deploy passenger planes to carry cargo when rates are above a certain point because it is a highly inefficient and costly process loading cabins by hand with all freight packaged in a way that can fit through the passenger doors. The air cargo industry has been in desperate need of additional capacity for months, underlined by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) stating in a recent report that daily widebody freighter utilization was already at its highest level since 2012 at almost 11 hours a day. The lack of capacity was particularly acute on belly cargo-heavy trade lanes where the markets have struggled to switch to freighters ever since the COVID-19 travel bans, IATA pointed out. “For example, total capacity on the large Europe-North America market was down 56 percent year over year in total in August, with dedicated freighters air cargo ton kilometers only up 8.8 percent,” the report said. Some air cargo solutions are being found in the most unlikely of places. In the first air freight job Maersk has undertaken since absorbing Damco’s air, ocean, and less-than-container load (LCL) services on Oct. 1, the carrier contracted 11 chartered flights for a shipper from low-cost carrier Air Asia. “We have been dealing with many different airlines and AirAsia X (XJ) offered the best fit both on charter cost and on load ability,” a Maersk spokesperson told JOC.com. AirAsia X operates Airbus 330-300s. “XJ supported loading cargo on passenger seats, which allowed us to maximize space on the aircraft,” the spokesperson for the carrier said. Contact Greg Knowler at greg.knowler@ihsmarkit.com and follow him on Twitter: @greg_knowler .

Air Cargo

China–Europe air cargo rates climb as new products hit the market

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">Ports on the US East and Gulf coasts say they have spare capacity and expect minor disruptions as they process more than 60 ships backlogged by a three-day strike</div>

Ports on the US East and Gulf coasts say they have spare capacity and expect minor disruptions as they process more than 60 ships backlogged by a three-day strike

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<div class="phx-topic">Ports up and down the US East and Gulf coasts expect a generally smooth resumption of cargo flow after reopening early Friday morning thanks to a tentative agreement Thursday that ended a three-day dockworker strike. The International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) and the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX), which represents maritime employers, said in a joint statement late Thursday they “have reached a tentative agreement on wages and have agreed to extend the master contract until Jan. 15, 2025, to return to the bargaining table to negotiate all other outstanding issues.” Port leaders say they have spare capacity and expect minimal disruptions in processing a backlog of <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/ships-backing-up-outside-of-strike-shut-us-east-gulf-ports-5741090">more than 60 ships</a>. Reduced volumes through the ports due to frontloading and diversions out of fear of the Oct. 1 strike threat — and the relatively short duration of the strike — will make the return to pre-disruption fluidity a matter of days, rather than weeks. In a Friday press conference, Bethann Rooney, port director for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, downplayed concerns about the impact of the strike on the East Coast’s busiest port, noting that the port often closes for two to three days for snow during winter. ”After a closure, we’ve been able to recover in a very quick way,” Rooney said. “I have not seen it take one week for every day of closure.” The total backlog of containers offshore and on the ground in New York-New Jersey amounts to about one week worth of volume at the port. The 19-ship backlog should be cleared by the end of next week, along with servicing ships that are still heading to the port, Rooney said. To the south, there was no waiting line for trucks at the Port of Savannah nor delays in discharging and loading at berths and the Mason Mega-rail facility, Georgia Ports Authority spokesman Tom Boyd said Friday. The port is offering weekend gates. At the Port of Baltimore, officials also compared the operational impact of the stoppage to a winter weather-driven interruption. The Maryland Port Administration, which has extended hours to include Saturday to deal with the backlog, said delayed vessels are being “quickly assimilated into the schedule.” The Port of Virginia said it has opened its reservation system and expects a return to normal operations within 24 hours, “with many components of the operation being restarted in parallel.” <h3>Labor peace ... for now </h3>The <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/ila-usmx-agree-on-new-wage-offer-and-contract-extension-that-reopens-ports-5741882">tentative agreement between the ILA and the USMX</a> ends a nearly two-year standoff over a new six-year master contract covering 45,000 longshore workers. The agreement ensures labor peace for 90 days, giving both sides time to wrestle with how automation is addressed in the contract. The two sides have agreed on economic terms, however, with container lines represented by the USMX agreeing to hike dockworker pay by more than 60%. The three-month extension, something <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/ila-usmx-remain-at-odds-over-dockworker-wage-increases-daggett-5215515">ILA President Harold Daggett had vehemently opposed</a> in the lead up to expiration of the existing contract on Sept. 30, removes any peak season pressure for the upcoming holiday shopping season. Most goods needed for Black Friday and up until Christmas moved through the East and Gulf coasts before the strike, with toys and electronics coming through the West Coast now. The end of the three-day strike, which grabbed global and popular attention, also takes political pressure off the Biden administration, and by extension, the presidential campaign of Vice President Kamala Harris. With election polling ending Nov. 5, President Joe Biden <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/white-houses-executive-lever-to-prevent-port-strike-is-politically-toxic-5733927">refused to break the strike</a> and risk antagonizing organizing labor and <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/house-republicans-shippers-up-pressure-on-biden-to-stop-us-port-strike-5740135">made no attempt to hide his support of the ILA</a> and scorn for “foreign-owned” ocean carriers. Public attention and emotions rose in the lead up to the tentative agreement. The ILA drew the ire of some for not working ports handling relief supplies for Hurricane Helene in the US Southeast. The union pledged $100,000 to the American Red Cross and asked its locals to contribute as well. The threat of a port takeover from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ratcheted up pressure to end the strike. Overnight, Daggett grabbed global attention, and much of it was negative. The New York Post published aerial photos of Daggett’s Sparta, NJ, home, along with his address and details of the union leader’s two salaries as president of the international and a New Jersey ILA local that amount to $900,000 per year. The next day, the ILA said in a statement that Daggett and other union leaders received “threats of violence” directed against them. There was also the doxing of USMX President Dave Adam by publishing his address and phone number on X, formerly Twitter. <h3>The automation elephant </h3>While a tentative agreement has been reached, some details haven’t been released, much less worked. Sources have told the Journal of Commerce the USMX offered longshore workers a $4-per-hour per-year increase to get talks restarted. The offer amounts to a 61.5% increase in the top tier of longshore wages. The USMX’s last offer prior to the strike was a $3-per-hour hike, equal to a 46% raise over the life of the six-year contract, according to a White House presentation shared with the Journal of Commerce last week. Back in June, the USMX initially offered <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/port-employers-urge-ila-to-return-to-contract-talks-5723976">the ILA a $2.50-per-hour (38%) raise</a>, which the <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/ila-halts-talks-over-new-contract-until-maersk-apm-clarify-port-it-projects-5244243">union flatly rejected</a> before breaking off talks. However, the tentative agreement does not address one of the key sticking points between the ILA and USMX: <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/conflicting-post-pandemic-worldviews-bring-ila-employers-to-historic-strike-5738509">automation</a>. The ILA has repeatedly said that it wants a complete ban on any automation project that would eliminate longshore jobs, while the USMX says it wants to keep language from the current contract that allows semi-automation projects to go ahead with the union’s consent. “Unless an agreement is reached on ILA’s very vocal demands to limit automation, disruption and uncertainty could return in January,” Peter Friedmann, executive director of the Agriculture Transportation Coalition said in a statement Friday. “Some who shifted to the West Coast gateways may stay there until the automation negotiations are resolved.” Contact Michael Angell at <a href="michael.angell@spglobal.com">michael.angell@spglobal.com</a>. Contact Laura Robb at <a href="laura.robb@spglobal.com. ">laura.robb@spglobal.com.</a>Contact Mark Szakonyi at <a href="mark.szakonyi@spglobal.com">mark.szakonyi@spglobal.com</a>. </div>

Ports up and down the US East and Gulf coasts expect a generally smooth resumption of cargo flow after reopening early Friday morning thanks to a tentative agreement Thursday that ended a three-day dockworker strike. The International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) and the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX), which represents maritime employers, said in a joint statement late Thursday they “have reached a tentative agreement on wages and have agreed to extend the master contract until Jan. 15, 2025, to return to the bargaining table to negotiate all other outstanding issues.” Port leaders say they have spare capacity and expect minimal disruptions in processing a backlog of more than 60 ships . Reduced volumes through the ports due to frontloading and diversions out of fear of the Oct. 1 strike threat — and the relatively short duration of the strike — will make the return to pre-disruption fluidity a matter of days, rather than weeks. In a Friday press conference, Bethann Rooney, port director for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, downplayed concerns about the impact of the strike on the East Coast’s busiest port, noting that the port often closes for two to three days for snow during winter. ”After a closure, we’ve been able to recover in a very quick way,” Rooney said. “I have not seen it take one week for every day of closure.” The total backlog of containers offshore and on the ground in New York-New Jersey amounts to about one week worth of volume at the port. The 19-ship backlog should be cleared by the end of next week, along with servicing ships that are still heading to the port, Rooney said. To the south, there was no waiting line for trucks at the Port of Savannah nor delays in discharging and loading at berths and the Mason Mega-rail facility, Georgia Ports Authority spokesman Tom Boyd said Friday. The port is offering weekend gates. At the Port of Baltimore, officials also compared the operational impact of the stoppage to a winter weather-driven interruption. The Maryland Port Administration, which has extended hours to include Saturday to deal with the backlog, said delayed vessels are being “quickly assimilated into the schedule.” The Port of Virginia said it has opened its reservation system and expects a return to normal operations within 24 hours, “with many components of the operation being restarted in parallel.” Labor peace ... for now The tentative agreement between the ILA and the USMX ends a nearly two-year standoff over a new six-year master contract covering 45,000 longshore workers. The agreement ensures labor peace for 90 days, giving both sides time to wrestle with how automation is addressed in the contract. The two sides have agreed on economic terms, however, with container lines represented by the USMX agreeing to hike dockworker pay by more than 60%. The three-month extension, something ILA President Harold Daggett had vehemently opposed in the lead up to expiration of the existing contract on Sept. 30, removes any peak season pressure for the upcoming holiday shopping season. Most goods needed for Black Friday and up until Christmas moved through the East and Gulf coasts before the strike, with toys and electronics coming through the West Coast now. The end of the three-day strike, which grabbed global and popular attention, also takes political pressure off the Biden administration, and by extension, the presidential campaign of Vice President Kamala Harris. With election polling ending Nov. 5, President Joe Biden refused to break the strike and risk antagonizing organizing labor and made no attempt to hide his support of the ILA and scorn for “foreign-owned” ocean carriers. Public attention and emotions rose in the lead up to the tentative agreement. The ILA drew the ire of some for not working ports handling relief supplies for Hurricane Helene in the US Southeast. The union pledged $100,000 to the American Red Cross and asked its locals to contribute as well. The threat of a port takeover from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ratcheted up pressure to end the strike. Overnight, Daggett grabbed global attention, and much of it was negative. The New York Post published aerial photos of Daggett’s Sparta, NJ, home, along with his address and details of the union leader’s two salaries as president of the international and a New Jersey ILA local that amount to $900,000 per year. The next day, the ILA said in a statement that Daggett and other union leaders received “threats of violence” directed against them. There was also the doxing of USMX President Dave Adam by publishing his address and phone number on X, formerly Twitter. The automation elephant While a tentative agreement has been reached, some details haven’t been released, much less worked. Sources have told the Journal of Commerce the USMX offered longshore workers a $4-per-hour per-year increase to get talks restarted. The offer amounts to a 61.5% increase in the top tier of longshore wages. The USMX’s last offer prior to the strike was a $3-per-hour hike, equal to a 46% raise over the life of the six-year contract, according to a White House presentation shared with the Journal of Commerce last week. Back in June, the USMX initially offered the ILA a $2.50-per-hour (38%) raise , which the union flatly rejected before breaking off talks. However, the tentative agreement does not address one of the key sticking points between the ILA and USMX: automation . The ILA has repeatedly said that it wants a complete ban on any automation project that would eliminate longshore jobs, while the USMX says it wants to keep language from the current contract that allows semi-automation projects to go ahead with the union’s consent. “Unless an agreement is reached on ILA’s very vocal demands to limit automation, disruption and uncertainty could return in January,” Peter Friedmann, executive director of the Agriculture Transportation Coalition said in a statement Friday. “Some who shifted to the West Coast gateways may stay there until the automation negotiations are resolved.” Contact Michael Angell at michael.angell@spglobal.com . Contact Laura Robb at laura.robb@spglobal.com. Contact Mark Szakonyi at mark.szakonyi@spglobal.com .

Container Shipping News

Port News

Drayage

Marine terminals

Longshore labor

North American ports

US East, Gulf coast ports confident of smooth post-strike reopening

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach registered their best year ever in reducing emissions, but they still face daunting challenges as they strive to reduce pollution that remains from vessel, cargo handling, truck and rail sources. </div>

The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach registered their best year ever in reducing emissions, but they still face daunting challenges as they strive to reduce pollution that remains from vessel, cargo handling, truck and rail sources.

<div class="phx-topic">Reduced vessel arrivals and container volumes, coupled with cleaner cargo-handling equipment from rail to drayage, helped the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach significantly reduce emissions last year, but the environmental challenges are only mounting. The combined ports’ 2023 emissions inventories released last week show reductions of 91% in diesel particulate matter (DPM), 72% for nitrogen oxides (NOx), 98% for sulfur oxides (SOx) and 20% for greenhouse gas (GHG) from a 2005 baseline. The ports in 2006 adopted their joint Clean Air Action Plan (CAAP) to reduce harmful emissions from all port operations. “These 2023 emission reductions are the most dramatic ever seen at our ports,” Jacqueline Moore, a vice president for the Pacific Merchants Shipping Association (PMSA), which represents carriers and terminal operators on the West Coast, said in a statement Friday. Ocean carriers, marine terminals, truckers, railroads and harbor craft operators have been shifting to cleaner-burning fuels, including zero-emission vehicles and cargo-handling equipment, for nearly two decades in an effort to achieve the goals outlined in the CAAP. Those goals are to operate zero-emission marine terminals by 2030 and drayage trucks by 2035. “Everyone is committed to those goals, but it will require the technology and [fuel] infrastructure to catch up,” PMSA Vice President Michele Grubbs told the Journal of Commerce Friday. <h3>Layered regulatory impact </h3>Port stakeholders must also comply with additional rules imposed by federal, state and regional regulators that in some cases exceed the CAAP targets. Those regulatory mandates, including independent source rules (ISRs) covering the ports, railroads and warehouse operators throughout Southern California, will add significant costs to operating the largest US port complex. In a Sept. 17 letter to the mayors of Los Angeles and Long Beach, shippers, transportation interests and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union said they feared the ISRs would be so restrictive that they would force stakeholders to limit the volume of cargo moving through the port complex. “There is broad agreement among the stakeholders that it would be more effective and productive to forego a Port ISR and instead focus on an infrastructure and streamlined permitting program to support current and future needs related to zero-emission infrastructure and equipment,” the letter said. What’s more, the work needed to further reduce emissions will be even more challenging, according to Gene Seroka, executive director of the Port of Los Angeles. “We are down to the last 9% of diesel particulate matter and last 2% of sulfur oxides from anything with an engine that moves cargo through our gateway,” Seroka said in a statement accompanying the release of the ports’ emissions inventories. “While what remains of these and other pollutants are the toughest to eliminate, we continue to partner with all our stakeholders to drive emissions down to zero.” In its report, Long Beach noted that carriers are operating fewer but larger vessels, which increases efficiency by generating more containers per vessel call. The average discharge per vessel call was 11,168 TEUs in 2023, up from 10,137 TEUs in 2022, according to the report. In addition, more ships are sailing slower within 40 miles of the coast, and more vessels are plugging into shoreside electrical power while at berth, both of which reduce emissions. Long Beach also noted that in the past year, each port has generated $30 million from the Clean Truck Fund that is being distributed in grants to drayage operators to purchase zero-emission trucks and also to develop charging infrastructure in the harbor. The funds are generated by a $10-per-TEU fee on laden containers drayed to and from the ports. Contact Bill Mongelluzzo at <a href="bill.mongelluzzo@spglobal.com">bill.mongelluzzo@spglobal.com</a>. </div>

Reduced vessel arrivals and container volumes, coupled with cleaner cargo-handling equipment from rail to drayage, helped the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach significantly reduce emissions last year, but the environmental challenges are only mounting. The combined ports’ 2023 emissions inventories released last week show reductions of 91% in diesel particulate matter (DPM), 72% for nitrogen oxides (NOx), 98% for sulfur oxides (SOx) and 20% for greenhouse gas (GHG) from a 2005 baseline. The ports in 2006 adopted their joint Clean Air Action Plan (CAAP) to reduce harmful emissions from all port operations. “These 2023 emission reductions are the most dramatic ever seen at our ports,” Jacqueline Moore, a vice president for the Pacific Merchants Shipping Association (PMSA), which represents carriers and terminal operators on the West Coast, said in a statement Friday. Ocean carriers, marine terminals, truckers, railroads and harbor craft operators have been shifting to cleaner-burning fuels, including zero-emission vehicles and cargo-handling equipment, for nearly two decades in an effort to achieve the goals outlined in the CAAP. Those goals are to operate zero-emission marine terminals by 2030 and drayage trucks by 2035. “Everyone is committed to those goals, but it will require the technology and [fuel] infrastructure to catch up,” PMSA Vice President Michele Grubbs told the Journal of Commerce Friday. Layered regulatory impact Port stakeholders must also comply with additional rules imposed by federal, state and regional regulators that in some cases exceed the CAAP targets. Those regulatory mandates, including independent source rules (ISRs) covering the ports, railroads and warehouse operators throughout Southern California, will add significant costs to operating the largest US port complex. In a Sept. 17 letter to the mayors of Los Angeles and Long Beach, shippers, transportation interests and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union said they feared the ISRs would be so restrictive that they would force stakeholders to limit the volume of cargo moving through the port complex. “There is broad agreement among the stakeholders that it would be more effective and productive to forego a Port ISR and instead focus on an infrastructure and streamlined permitting program to support current and future needs related to zero-emission infrastructure and equipment,” the letter said. What’s more, the work needed to further reduce emissions will be even more challenging, according to Gene Seroka, executive director of the Port of Los Angeles. “We are down to the last 9% of diesel particulate matter and last 2% of sulfur oxides from anything with an engine that moves cargo through our gateway,” Seroka said in a statement accompanying the release of the ports’ emissions inventories. “While what remains of these and other pollutants are the toughest to eliminate, we continue to partner with all our stakeholders to drive emissions down to zero.” In its report, Long Beach noted that carriers are operating fewer but larger vessels, which increases efficiency by generating more containers per vessel call. The average discharge per vessel call was 11,168 TEUs in 2023, up from 10,137 TEUs in 2022, according to the report. In addition, more ships are sailing slower within 40 miles of the coast, and more vessels are plugging into shoreside electrical power while at berth, both of which reduce emissions. Long Beach also noted that in the past year, each port has generated $30 million from the Clean Truck Fund that is being distributed in grants to drayage operators to purchase zero-emission trucks and also to develop charging infrastructure in the harbor. The funds are generated by a $10-per-TEU fee on laden containers drayed to and from the ports. Contact Bill Mongelluzzo at bill.mongelluzzo@spglobal.com .

Port infrastructure

LA-LB port significantly cuts emissions, but tougher challenges await

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">While shippers and intermodal providers agree that rail cargo theft is a problem, there is no consensus about the right solution.</div>

While shippers and intermodal providers agree that rail cargo theft is a problem, there is no consensus about the right solution.

<div class="phx-topic">Cargo theft is surging along US railways, leaving shippers worried about the safety of high-value goods in transit, and while heavy-duty lock makers claim their products deter theft, industry experts are divided on whether these new security devices make containers safer. In the first half of this year, cargo thefts on trucks and rail jumped 49% to 787 incidents, likely an undercount due to unreported crimes handled without local or federal authorities, according to cargo security firm Overhaul. Punishment remains relatively light, with thieves often released on bail within hours, according to the railroads. “We must come out and explain how this is a $50 billion problem to the US economy and back it up in a court of law, rather than dealing with each case on a per-incident or per-container basis,” Will Johnson, a chief special agent with BNSF Railway Police, said during the Journal of Commerce Inland Distribution Conference 2024 (Inland24). Following the <a href="https://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/cargo-theft-container-los-angeles-packages-commerce/2799795/">high-profile incidents</a> <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/14/economy/la-freight-railroad-theft/index.html">in Los Angeles in 2022</a>, cargo theft has evolved into a <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/us-rail-cargo-crime-on-the-rise-as-thieves-methods-gain-sophistication-5219201">more organized and coordinated threat</a>. In January, Los Angeles police arrested a man allegedly involved in a crime ring responsible for stealing over $5 million in Nike shoes. Criminals often use tools such as portable grinders to break into containers, rendering traditional seals and padlocks ineffective. To counter this, many in the industry are turning to specialized locks, bars and bracing cables. However, opinions are mixed on whether these heavy-duty locks deter criminals or paint a bigger target on containers. “The specialized tools can paint can a bit of a target or bullseye on the box,” Phil Yeager, CEO of Hub Group, said at Inland24. He advocated for alternative strategies, such as placing containers in the bottom well of railcars and strategic parking inside terminals. Supporters of specialized locks, such as War-Lok and the Enforcer lock, argue that these devices make containers more difficult to breach, encouraging thieves to move on to easier targets. “It may make the container a target, but now it’s a harder target than the next one,” Jason Moore, a sergeant with the Memphis Police assigned to the FBI Cargo Crime Task Force, said during the conference. “If you’ve got a War-Lok, and another box has a bolt seal, which one is easier to get into? Obviously, the bolt seal because it’s going to take less time and thus be more attractive.” Shane Blair, senior vice president of intermodal at Swift Transportation, cautioned that these locks also create additional management responsibilities and logistical challenges. “Our customers feel safer with these locks, but who manages the program? Is it us? Is it the railroad?” Blair asked the Inland24 audience. “Who holds the master key? We can’t have 800 sets of keys; it defeats the purpose. While I believe in these locks, they add complexity for rail partners, drivers and shippers.” <h3>Informational risks </h3>The inside threat of people with access to sensitive data using it for criminal purposes is also rising at a troubling rate. Moore said one rail ramp employee was arrested earlier this year in Memphis for allegedly stealing about $1 million worth of cargo inside containers. The senior manager, who was earning over $200,000 annually, was suspected of teaching others how to carry out similar crimes. “He targeted specific brands and flipped the products for profit, but investigators used ramp footage to secure a search warrant and recover stolen goods,” Moore said. Although the transportation industry has embraced information sharing, the risk of sharing too much data can be as significant as sharing too little, according to Rachael Acker, senior director of global logistics at Wolverine Worldwide. She said carriers should know what’s being transported, but not specific brand names. “When we use domestic intermodal or trucking, we use an internal number that no one can look up,” Acker explained. “It’s not associated with any universal product code (UPC), so there’s no way to trace it back to the exact brand.” Contact Ari Ashe at <a href="mailto:ari.ashe@spglobal.com">ari.ashe@spglobal.com</a>. </div>

Cargo theft is surging along US railways, leaving shippers worried about the safety of high-value goods in transit, and while heavy-duty lock makers claim their products deter theft, industry experts are divided on whether these new security devices make containers safer. In the first half of this year, cargo thefts on trucks and rail jumped 49% to 787 incidents, likely an undercount due to unreported crimes handled without local or federal authorities, according to cargo security firm Overhaul. Punishment remains relatively light, with thieves often released on bail within hours, according to the railroads. “We must come out and explain how this is a $50 billion problem to the US economy and back it up in a court of law, rather than dealing with each case on a per-incident or per-container basis,” Will Johnson, a chief special agent with BNSF Railway Police, said during the Journal of Commerce Inland Distribution Conference 2024 (Inland24). Following the high-profile incidents in Los Angeles in 2022 , cargo theft has evolved into a more organized and coordinated threat . In January, Los Angeles police arrested a man allegedly involved in a crime ring responsible for stealing over $5 million in Nike shoes. Criminals often use tools such as portable grinders to break into containers, rendering traditional seals and padlocks ineffective. To counter this, many in the industry are turning to specialized locks, bars and bracing cables. However, opinions are mixed on whether these heavy-duty locks deter criminals or paint a bigger target on containers. “The specialized tools can paint can a bit of a target or bullseye on the box,” Phil Yeager, CEO of Hub Group, said at Inland24. He advocated for alternative strategies, such as placing containers in the bottom well of railcars and strategic parking inside terminals. Supporters of specialized locks, such as War-Lok and the Enforcer lock, argue that these devices make containers more difficult to breach, encouraging thieves to move on to easier targets. “It may make the container a target, but now it’s a harder target than the next one,” Jason Moore, a sergeant with the Memphis Police assigned to the FBI Cargo Crime Task Force, said during the conference. “If you’ve got a War-Lok, and another box has a bolt seal, which one is easier to get into? Obviously, the bolt seal because it’s going to take less time and thus be more attractive.” Shane Blair, senior vice president of intermodal at Swift Transportation, cautioned that these locks also create additional management responsibilities and logistical challenges. “Our customers feel safer with these locks, but who manages the program? Is it us? Is it the railroad?” Blair asked the Inland24 audience. “Who holds the master key? We can’t have 800 sets of keys; it defeats the purpose. While I believe in these locks, they add complexity for rail partners, drivers and shippers.” Informational risks The inside threat of people with access to sensitive data using it for criminal purposes is also rising at a troubling rate. Moore said one rail ramp employee was arrested earlier this year in Memphis for allegedly stealing about $1 million worth of cargo inside containers. The senior manager, who was earning over $200,000 annually, was suspected of teaching others how to carry out similar crimes. “He targeted specific brands and flipped the products for profit, but investigators used ramp footage to secure a search warrant and recover stolen goods,” Moore said. Although the transportation industry has embraced information sharing, the risk of sharing too much data can be as significant as sharing too little, according to Rachael Acker, senior director of global logistics at Wolverine Worldwide. She said carriers should know what’s being transported, but not specific brand names. “When we use domestic intermodal or trucking, we use an internal number that no one can look up,” Acker explained. “It’s not associated with any universal product code (UPC), so there’s no way to trace it back to the exact brand.” Contact Ari Ashe at ari.ashe@spglobal.com .

North-American rail

Intermodal providers

Rail industry split on how to best combat cargo theft

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">New provisional guidelines from Indian regulators will allow the major shipping alliances to operate at national ports as long as homegrown carriers get guaranteed access to a 5% share of the massive vessel-sharing agreements. </div>

New provisional guidelines from Indian regulators will allow the major shipping alliances to operate at national ports as long as homegrown carriers get guaranteed access to a 5% share of the massive vessel-sharing agreements.

<div class="phx-topic">Amid an ongoing wave of ocean carrier alliance realignments, Indian shipping regulators are seeking a “tradeoff” approach to continue treating vessel-sharing agreements (VSAs), led by carriers operating foreign-flagged fleets, outside of national competition law provisions. The Directorate General of Shipping (DG Shipping) has released provisional guidelines intended to grant such VSAs an extended exemption from antitrust regulations in exchange for Indian companies gaining consortium participation rights. The previous exemption order expired in July. Broadly, a fresh three-year immunity will be provided contingent upon carrier groupings allocating 5% of the total declared space to both Indian-flagged vessels and domestic non-vessel-operating common carriers (NVOs) under their alliance or consortium arrangements. “This draft notification aims to promote fair competition, enhance transparency and ensure better representation of Indian shipping lines and NVOs in the global container trade, while balancing the interests of all stakeholders in the maritime sector,” said the DG Shipping in its draft legislation circulated to industry stakeholders. “A particular focus is on ensuring that the conditions outlined in the notification address current market challenges, including those related to fair space allocation, anti-competitive practices and the inclusion of Indian-flag vessels.” The maritime administrator also noted that it will monitor the operation of VSAs and report any anti-competitive practices, including refusal to negotiate with shippers and indulging in price gouging, to the federal watchdog Competition Commission of India for intervention and regulatory action. Stakeholders have until Oct. 8 to file responses with the authority. <h3>Shielding the homegrown industry </h3>The move is being viewed as a government strategy to rebuild some stakes for local container shipping industry interests, a segment that has become deeply marginalized with no tonnage capabilities. For example, the national carrier, Shipping Corporation of India (SCI), remains confined to a single long-haul VSA partnership with Mediterranean Shipping Co. covering India-Europe trades, contributing one midsize vessel. SCI recently acquired a 9,000-TEU ship, reportedly foreign-flagged on time charter, and is considering adding another five to its fleet for a noticeable comeback into the container market as shipper groups continually press the government for “own ocean capacity” to ease their supply chain pressures. Officials at the Container Shipping Lines Association (CSLA), which spearheads the cause of foreign liners in India, were unavailable for comment. The proposed policy shift was, however, greeted warmly by Indian shipowners and pro-shipper industry sources. “It’s a positive move,” Anil Devli, CEO of the Indian National Shipowners Association (INSA), told the Journal of Commerce. “Indian companies now have the opportunity to invest in container fleets, an area hitherto dominated by foreign carriers, in due course of time, bringing relief to the domestic exporters.” That said, given the operational complexities of global alliances, with the prominent Gemini network between Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd due to begin in February 2025, it’s unlikely that the outlined “give-and-take” engagement will be easily signed on by mega carriers enjoying a fiefdom of the Indian container market. Contact Bency Matthew at <a href="bencymathew@gmail.com">bencymathew@gmail.com</a>.</div>

Amid an ongoing wave of ocean carrier alliance realignments, Indian shipping regulators are seeking a “tradeoff” approach to continue treating vessel-sharing agreements (VSAs), led by carriers operating foreign-flagged fleets, outside of national competition law provisions. The Directorate General of Shipping (DG Shipping) has released provisional guidelines intended to grant such VSAs an extended exemption from antitrust regulations in exchange for Indian companies gaining consortium participation rights. The previous exemption order expired in July. Broadly, a fresh three-year immunity will be provided contingent upon carrier groupings allocating 5% of the total declared space to both Indian-flagged vessels and domestic non-vessel-operating common carriers (NVOs) under their alliance or consortium arrangements. “This draft notification aims to promote fair competition, enhance transparency and ensure better representation of Indian shipping lines and NVOs in the global container trade, while balancing the interests of all stakeholders in the maritime sector,” said the DG Shipping in its draft legislation circulated to industry stakeholders. “A particular focus is on ensuring that the conditions outlined in the notification address current market challenges, including those related to fair space allocation, anti-competitive practices and the inclusion of Indian-flag vessels.” The maritime administrator also noted that it will monitor the operation of VSAs and report any anti-competitive practices, including refusal to negotiate with shippers and indulging in price gouging, to the federal watchdog Competition Commission of India for intervention and regulatory action. Stakeholders have until Oct. 8 to file responses with the authority. Shielding the homegrown industry The move is being viewed as a government strategy to rebuild some stakes for local container shipping industry interests, a segment that has become deeply marginalized with no tonnage capabilities. For example, the national carrier, Shipping Corporation of India (SCI), remains confined to a single long-haul VSA partnership with Mediterranean Shipping Co. covering India-Europe trades, contributing one midsize vessel. SCI recently acquired a 9,000-TEU ship, reportedly foreign-flagged on time charter, and is considering adding another five to its fleet for a noticeable comeback into the container market as shipper groups continually press the government for “own ocean capacity” to ease their supply chain pressures. Officials at the Container Shipping Lines Association (CSLA), which spearheads the cause of foreign liners in India, were unavailable for comment. The proposed policy shift was, however, greeted warmly by Indian shipowners and pro-shipper industry sources. “It’s a positive move,” Anil Devli, CEO of the Indian National Shipowners Association (INSA), told the Journal of Commerce. “Indian companies now have the opportunity to invest in container fleets, an area hitherto dominated by foreign carriers, in due course of time, bringing relief to the domestic exporters.” That said, given the operational complexities of global alliances, with the prominent Gemini network between Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd due to begin in February 2025, it’s unlikely that the outlined “give-and-take” engagement will be easily signed on by mega carriers enjoying a fiefdom of the Indian container market. Contact Bency Matthew at bencymathew@gmail.com .

International ports

Container lines

India regulators seek VSA ‘trade-off’ for local carriers and alliances

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">Maritime employers and the union representing some 45,000 East and Gulf coast dockworkers have reportedly closed the gap in wage expectations to just $1 per hour per year.</div>

Maritime employers and the union representing some 45,000 East and Gulf coast dockworkers have reportedly closed the gap in wage expectations to just $1 per hour per year.

<div class="phx-topic">Maritime employers and the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) have reached a tentative deal to reopen container terminals at East and Gulf coast ports after trading new wage offers that would bring dockworker pay up over 60%. Longshore workers will work under a three-month contract extension until a formal deal is reached. Official announcement of the breakthrough is expected Thursday evening, sources told the Journal of Commerce. The White House is scheduled to host a briefing Friday morning on the port strike. The ILA and United States Maritime Alliance (USMX), the employer group that represents ocean carrier and terminal operators in longshore contract negotiations, have yet to respond for a request for comment.Ports are expected to reopen Friday. The USMX is offering the ILA a $4-per-hour increase to get talks restarted on the condition that the ILA agrees to an extension through January 15 on the current contract that would allow ports to reopen while negotiations resume. ILA President Harold Daggett has repeatedly said <a href="">union members would not work under a contract extension</a>.The offer represents a 62% increase in top wages for longshore workers. The USMX gave Biden administration officials a glimpse of their previous offer before the union rejected it on Monday, setting off the first strike along East and Gulf coast ports in 47 years. According to the presentation delivered last week at the White House during a meeting with USMX officials, employers were willing to offer the ILA a $3-per-hour raise in each year of the six-year contract, a total raise of $18 per hour (46%) over the contract’s term.The USMX said in its last statement prior to the strike its latest offer would “increase wages by nearly 50 percent,” although it did not detail the exact dollar amount. The offer is an improvement on <a href="">the $2.50-per-hour (38%) raise the USMX proposed in its first counteroffer to the union and would bring average wages</a>, including overtime and container royalties, to $500,000 per year for a dockworker at the Port of New York and New Jersey.The offer terms also would raise entry-level wages for new ILA members from $20 per hour to $30 per hour.However, <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/ila-seeking-huge-wage-hike-from-maritime-employers-sources-5703094">the union sought a $5-per-hour (77%) wage hike</a>, based on the record profits recorded by ocean carriers during the COVID-19 pandemic. This is a developing story and may be updated as new information is received.Contact Michael Angell at <a href="mailto:michael.angell@spglobal.com">michael.angell@spglobal.com</a>.		Contact Mark Szakonyi at <a href="mailto:mark.szakonyi@spglobal.com">mark.szakonyi@spglobal.com</a>.</div>

Maritime employers and the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) have reached a tentative deal to reopen container terminals at East and Gulf coast ports after trading new wage offers that would bring dockworker pay up over 60%. Longshore workers will work under a three-month contract extension until a formal deal is reached. Official announcement of the breakthrough is expected Thursday evening, sources told the Journal of Commerce. The White House is scheduled to host a briefing Friday morning on the port strike. The ILA and United States Maritime Alliance (USMX), the employer group that represents ocean carrier and terminal operators in longshore contract negotiations, have yet to respond for a request for comment. Ports are expected to reopen Friday. The USMX is offering the ILA a $4-per-hour increase to get talks restarted on the condition that the ILA agrees to an extension through January 15 on the current contract that would allow ports to reopen while negotiations resume. ILA President Harold Daggett has repeatedly said union members would not work under a contract extension . The offer represents a 62% increase in top wages for longshore workers. The USMX gave Biden administration officials a glimpse of their previous offer before the union rejected it on Monday, setting off the first strike along East and Gulf coast ports in 47 years. According to the presentation delivered last week at the White House during a meeting with USMX officials, employers were willing to offer the ILA a $3-per-hour raise in each year of the six-year contract, a total raise of $18 per hour (46%) over the contract’s term. The USMX said in its last statement prior to the strike its latest offer would “increase wages by nearly 50 percent,” although it did not detail the exact dollar amount. The offer is an improvement on the $2.50-per-hour (38%) raise the USMX proposed in its first counteroffer to the union and would bring average wages , including overtime and container royalties, to $500,000 per year for a dockworker at the Port of New York and New Jersey. The offer terms also would raise entry-level wages for new ILA members from $20 per hour to $30 per hour. However, the union sought a $5-per-hour (77%) wage hike , based on the record profits recorded by ocean carriers during the COVID-19 pandemic. This is a developing story and may be updated as new information is received. Contact Michael Angell at michael.angell@spglobal.com . Contact Mark Szakonyi at mark.szakonyi@spglobal.com .

ILA, USMX agree on new wage offer and contract extension that reopens ports

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The world of LTL is slow to embrace change. Business anachronisms permeate current supply chain processes. These vestiges of the way things used to work define the LTL freight transportation procurement process of many modern shippers.David Knuth, logistics specialist at IEWC, a global supplier of cable and wire based in Wisconsin, is happy to have modernized the RFP process, automating the entire LTL bidding procedure with Bid$ense, SMC³’s automated truckload and LTL freight transportation sourcing solution. But when prompted, he can still recall what once was.In his previous job, a large part of his duties were consumed by creating an intermodal bid package for carriers. In a spreadsheet, Knuth detailed the company’s volumes lane by lane, taking care to delete any errant keystrokes or misleading data. He would then email out the information to each carrier, taking time to respond to detailed technical questions about the spreadsheet data. Finally, he had to compile all the results, create an algorithm that would compare the carriers on each lane, and award the business.“It was a huge undertaking. It took about four months to do,” Knuth said of the old process. “It was almost a full-time job for that part of the year, every year.”In his new job at IEWC, he sat down with Bid$ense on day one and was amazed at the capabilities. Knuth had never before used a bid tool. SMC³’s latest versions of Bid$ense automate the process even further, taking truckload and LTL RFPs entirely online. The tool draws on RFP best-practices protocols to streamline the bidding communication process, enabling bidding carriers to respond accurately and promptly to shipper requests. The solution also does all the distribution work automatically, electronically submitting shipper bid data to carriers based on their actual service capabilities and performance records. Carriers are alerted with timely prompts for RFP deliverables, so shippers aren’t waiting by the phone for responses.Another benefit of automating the process is the data-cleansing assistance. When Knuth sent spreadsheets to carriers, data errors might cloud the bidding process; he might have to resend data or simply accept a price that did not truly reflect the costs of doing business. Data cleansing is incredibly beneficial, he said.The spreadsheet technique also made bidding analysis an onerous task. Since Bid$ense automates and streamlines the entire RFP process, intensive examination is now simple. SMC³ knows that each bid has more than one best outcome. With uniform responses from each carrier, shippers can quickly rank results and create an unlimited quantity of what-if scenarios to make the optimal procurement decision.Jesse Burnett of Central Garden &amp; Pet experiences many of the same benefits. Founded in 1980, Central Garden &amp; Pet has spent the last three decades growing from a small garden supply company to a provider of a range of products from dog chews and bird seed to soil supplements and natural insecticides. For much of its life, the company shipped these disparate goods via LTL and truckload carriers to retailers throughout the country, relying on each business unit to negotiate directly with their freight transportation providers. This arrangement worked fairly well for a small company, but as Central Garden &amp; Pet expanded, leadership decided to consolidate decision making.Burnett helped centralize the transportation decision making in 2015 with SMC³’s Bid$ense. Before Bid$ense, every business unit operated independently as far as negotiating with carriers.“There were a lot of different things just floating around,” he said. “We didn’t have master agreements in place; no national pricing at all. The pricing from carriers was just all over the place, depending on where you were.”The transformations he saw with Bid$ense were immediate. Burnett has been using the tool about every other year since its implementation at the company. Central Garden and Pet’s $19.6 million 2019 LTL bid saved the company just more than 9 percent when compared to its historical average. For Burnett, though, bid automation extends far beyond savings.“We knew that we weren’t getting the best pricing offer from our carriers just because nothing was centralized,” he continued. “We knew that if we combined everything from all these business units and paired it with one corporate offering, then it would drive some cost benefit with it.”When the company initially decided to centralize bid procurement, executives researched a number of different methodologies and technologies. In the end, though, Burnett found that Bid$ense was both widespread and well known, and that his carrier partners already knew how to use the application. Burnett also highlighted the data-cleansing process as a major benefit, saying the rigorous process ensures that carriers always return the best price.“It definitely has helped drive savings,” he said. “Any time you go out there and you drive that competitiveness with the carriers and they know they’re in a bid environment, it seems to sharpen their pencils.”Transportation procurement is an integral part of the modern supply chain. With Bid$ense, shippers can develop a strategic implementation plan that saves them time and money, but also helps them create strong relationships with their carrier partners. These carriers appreciate the solution’s data-cleansing process; when carriers receive a complete shipment history and future volume forecast, they don’t have to guess on pricing. Carriers that receive more data from shippers get a complete picture of that shipper’s freight, allowing them to accurately plan instead of simply preparing for the worst-case scenario. Clean data presented through an automated system can lead to both bigger shipment savings and a lasting partnership between carrier and customer.Whether customers are looking to streamline over-the-road transportation bidding by automating the RFP process or create an entirely new, centralized sourcing process, Bid$ense has the analytical horsepower to get the job done.SMC³ 2020 Customer Case Study

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Shippers save money, time with automated transportation bidding tools

If there’s one immutable truth in the world of logistics, it’s this: LTL is an inherently complex form of transportation. Tariffs, rates, DIM weights, transit times — it’s enough to confuse even seasoned logistics professionals. The solution to this knowledge gap has historically been on-the-job training or university supply chain education, but for a variety of reasons there is now a pressing need for third-party, remote LTL training that prepares logistics workers for transportation success. Global Scope Can Overlook Local Intricacies In the past, professionals looking to move into a supply chain career learned about the basics of supply chain from universities. However, many of these college supply chain programs are now global in scope, focusing on worldwide supply chain management instead of the intricacies of specialized domestic transportation. And even these programs, which used to be widespread, are becoming less common. LTL is not an industry of broad-brush strokes; supply chain professionals really need a pointillistic understanding of the logistics of LTL in order to excel in the industry. Accelerating Need for Dedicated LTL Education This lack of specified training put the onus on employers to prepare new hires with the LTL knowledge needed to do their jobs. Dedicated LTL study is a necessity, not a luxury. At the same time, changes in LTL and the broader supply chain world are accelerating. The reliance on e-commerce has ballooned since the start of the pandemic, and last-mile LTL shipments and related e-commerce strains on the supply chain won’t diminish once social distancing abates. That genie isn’t going back into the bottle. So supply chain employers need logistics workers that are fully versed in all aspects of the industry, ready to solve unique shipping and delivery problems based on their extensive supply chain knowledge But why care about LTL? It’s been reported that some shippers in today’s world are no longer concerned with what mode is used to ship their goods. A Multimodal Approach Ensures On-Time Delivery This mode agnosticism means supply chain stakeholders have to be well versed in all modes of transportation. As unforeseen weather events and other disruptions, such as protests, become more common, savvy logistics employees will need to be armed with familiarity of all modes, not just the most popular, to ensure that freight is delivered on time, without damage, and in the most financially expedient way possible. Offerings like SMC³’s LTL online education courses cover a wide range of topics from LTL basics and operations to more advanced concepts like pricing analytics and transportation law. The company also has plans to continually refresh content, adding new expert presenters and taking the feedback of students to make the courses even better as time goes on. Learn more about&nbsp;<a href="https://logisticstrainingcenter.com/smc3-courses/" rel="noreferrer" class="joc_admin__link">SMC³’s LTL Online Education program</a>&nbsp;and view the 2021 hybrid schedule, featuring live industry experts,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.smc3.com/onlinelearning2021/" rel="noreferrer" class="joc_admin__link">here.</a>

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