<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">YRC Worldwide plans to lock out a small group of mechanics represented by a machinists' union that so far has refused to accept wage and benefit concessions agreed to by Teamsters employees as early as 2009.</div>

YRC Worldwide plans to lock out a small group of mechanics represented by a machinists' union that so far has refused to accept wage and benefit concessions agreed to by Teamsters employees as early as 2009.

<div>YRC Worldwide is facing off against a union representing a small group of employees, demanding those workers take the same wage and benefit cuts already accepted by thousands of Teamsters and nonunion co-workers.The $4.9 billion less-than-truckload operator said it will end a contract extension April 15 that covers about 200 members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers. The contract expired March 31, and talks are deadlocked over the wage and benefit concessions.“We will actually lock them out,” said James Welch, CEO of the holding company. “We’re hoping that will help force some more serious negotiations.”A lockout of...

YRC Worldwide is facing off against a union representing a small group of employees, demanding those workers take the same wage and benefit cuts already accepted by thousands of Teamsters and nonunion co-workers. The $4.9 billion less-than-truckload operator said it will end a contract extension April 15 that covers about 200 members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers. The contract expired March 31, and talks are deadlocked over the wage and benefit concessions. “We will actually lock them out,” said James Welch, CEO of the holding company. “We’re hoping that will help force some more serious negotiations.” A lockout of the IAM workers would have no impact on customer service, and would close no terminals or facilities in the YRC Freight or Holland networks, Welch said. “We’re very confident we won’t have any business interruptions,” he said. YRC Worldwide is the largest unionized trucking employer, but the vast majority of its union employees are represented by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. “The IAM represents less than one-tenth of 1 percent” of the company's 32,000 employees, Welch said. The IAM members are concentrated at about 10 terminals in Chicago, St. Louis and a few other areas, Welch said. “It’s real easy for us to reroute trucks (for maintenance); we have garages across our service network,” he said. Starting in 2009, the Teamsters employees agreed to three rounds of wage and benefit reductions that took wages down 15 percent and temporarily suspended pension contributions. Reduced pension contributions resumed in 2012. The company's current contract with the Teamsters expires in 2015. The IAM employees “did not take the wage and pension adjustments everyone else took,” Welch said. “They refused to go along with the shared sacrifice our union and nonunion employees took. We feel we need to get everyone on the same page.” Representatives of the IAM were not immediately available for comment. “It’s hard to have two employees working side by side when one has agreed to concessions and one has not," Welch said. "These machinists are at a small number of facilities. We’ve made it clear we’re serious about reducing the cost and shared sacrifice.” Contact William B. Cassidy at wcassidy@joc.com and follow him at twitter.com/wbcassidy_joc .

YRC Worldwide to Lock Out IAM Mechanics

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">The ill-tempered environmental protection committee session was filled with procedural maneuvering as member states opposed to the net-zero framework attempted to delay the proceedings. </div>

The ill-tempered environmental protection committee session was filled with procedural maneuvering as member states opposed to the net-zero framework attempted to delay the proceedings.

Feature image

<div class="phx-topic">Member states of the International Maritime Organization voted to postpone for one year the adoption of far-reaching decarbonization plans, with the US and petrostates Saudia Arabia and Russia leading efforts to derail the adoption of the greenhouse gas cutting measures. The United States has gone as far as threatening to target the ships of IMO members states that didn’t support efforts to ease fuel standards. A visibly upset IMO secretary general Arsenio Dominguez told delegates in his remarks following the Friday vote that “there are no winners and losers in this session.” The motion to delay the adoption of the IMO’s net-zero framework, put forward by Singapore, was called to a vote by Saudi Arabia in a tense and combative session of the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) in London this week. The vote to delay was 57 in favor, 49 against and 21 abstentions. “The outcome is your decision, and I will always respect that, but it is the manner in which the conversations took place this week…this was not a normal IMO meeting,” Dominguez said. “As we come to an end, my plea to you is not to repeat the way we have approached this meeting in future discussions of this or any other meeting at the IMO,” he added. “It doesn’t help you or your organization.” In the MEPC meeting in April, there was a clear majority in favor of the net-zero framework among IMO member nations, as well as from container carriers, major ports and shipping associations such as BIMCO, the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) and the World Shipping Council (WSC). That momentum has now been lost following this week’s ill-tempered MEPC session filled with procedural maneuvering as member states opposed to the net-zero framework attempted to delay the proceedings. At one point, the secretary general was forced to intervene in a debate over carbon rules after the US accused the IMO secretariat of bias. Saudi Arabia and the US later attempted to further stall proceedings by proposing that the rules be accepted by explicit acceptance rather than tacit, an approach to voting that seldom delivers a result. <h3>Aggressive US attempts to limit support </h3>The lead up to the meeting was characterized by aggressive US attempts to limit support for the net-zero framework, with Washington threatening sanctions, port fees and visa restrictions on countries voting in support of the measure. President Trump even weighed in on his Truth Social media platform with a post Thursday saying “the US will not stand for this Global Green New Scam Tax on Shipping. Stand with the US and vote NO in London tomorrow!” As delegates prepared to return home empty-handed, some reflected that putting the talks on hold will give countries more time to find consensus on a flagship climate law, while others fear it was a missed opportunity and the US will simply ramp up pressure on developing countries to oppose adoption at a later stage. Jesse Fahnestock, director of decarbonization at the Global Maritime Forum, called the adjournment a “disappointing setback for shipping.” “The adjournment for a full year creates serious challenges for meeting the timelines in the net-zero framework agreed in April and will make delivery of the sector’s decarbonization targets even more challenging,” he said. “We encourage member states that agreed on the framework in April to re-confirm their commitment to multilateralism and continue the urgent work of developing guidelines and adopting a regulatory framework that can deliver on the IMO’s unanimously agreed greenhouse gas strategy,” he added. Natacha Stamatiou, manager of global shipping and IMO delegation lead at the Environmental Defense Fund, said the delay means “innovation will struggle to scale, inequities will deepen and the transition to clean shipping will become harder and more costly.” Other climate activists were more direct in their criticism. Emma Fenton, senior diplomacy director at Opportunity Green, called the outcome “a devastating indictment of member states’ lack of courage.” “Faced with pressure, too many governments chose political compromise over climate justice, and in doing so, abandoned the countries bearing the brunt of the climate crisis,” she said after the meeting concluded. Contact Greg Knowler at <a href="mailto:greg.knowler@spglobal.com">greg.knowler@spglobal.com</a>. </div>

Member states of the International Maritime Organization voted to postpone for one year the adoption of far-reaching decarbonization plans, with the US and petrostates Saudia Arabia and Russia leading efforts to derail the adoption of the greenhouse gas cutting measures. The United States has gone as far as threatening to target the ships of IMO members states that didn’t support efforts to ease fuel standards. A visibly upset IMO secretary general Arsenio Dominguez told delegates in his remarks following the Friday vote that “there are no winners and losers in this session.” The motion to delay the adoption of the IMO’s net-zero framework, put forward by Singapore, was called to a vote by Saudi Arabia in a tense and combative session of the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) in London this week. The vote to delay was 57 in favor, 49 against and 21 abstentions. “The outcome is your decision, and I will always respect that, but it is the manner in which the conversations took place this week…this was not a normal IMO meeting,” Dominguez said. “As we come to an end, my plea to you is not to repeat the way we have approached this meeting in future discussions of this or any other meeting at the IMO,” he added. “It doesn’t help you or your organization.” In the MEPC meeting in April, there was a clear majority in favor of the net-zero framework among IMO member nations, as well as from container carriers, major ports and shipping associations such as BIMCO, the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) and the World Shipping Council (WSC). That momentum has now been lost following this week’s ill-tempered MEPC session filled with procedural maneuvering as member states opposed to the net-zero framework attempted to delay the proceedings. At one point, the secretary general was forced to intervene in a debate over carbon rules after the US accused the IMO secretariat of bias. Saudi Arabia and the US later attempted to further stall proceedings by proposing that the rules be accepted by explicit acceptance rather than tacit, an approach to voting that seldom delivers a result. Aggressive US attempts to limit support The lead up to the meeting was characterized by aggressive US attempts to limit support for the net-zero framework, with Washington threatening sanctions, port fees and visa restrictions on countries voting in support of the measure. President Trump even weighed in on his Truth Social media platform with a post Thursday saying “the US will not stand for this Global Green New Scam Tax on Shipping. Stand with the US and vote NO in London tomorrow!” As delegates prepared to return home empty-handed, some reflected that putting the talks on hold will give countries more time to find consensus on a flagship climate law, while others fear it was a missed opportunity and the US will simply ramp up pressure on developing countries to oppose adoption at a later stage. Jesse Fahnestock, director of decarbonization at the Global Maritime Forum, called the adjournment a “disappointing setback for shipping.” “The adjournment for a full year creates serious challenges for meeting the timelines in the net-zero framework agreed in April and will make delivery of the sector’s decarbonization targets even more challenging,” he said. “We encourage member states that agreed on the framework in April to re-confirm their commitment to multilateralism and continue the urgent work of developing guidelines and adopting a regulatory framework that can deliver on the IMO’s unanimously agreed greenhouse gas strategy,” he added. Natacha Stamatiou, manager of global shipping and IMO delegation lead at the Environmental Defense Fund, said the delay means “innovation will struggle to scale, inequities will deepen and the transition to clean shipping will become harder and more costly.” Other climate activists were more direct in their criticism. Emma Fenton, senior diplomacy director at Opportunity Green, called the outcome “a devastating indictment of member states’ lack of courage.” “Faced with pressure, too many governments chose political compromise over climate justice, and in doing so, abandoned the countries bearing the brunt of the climate crisis,” she said after the meeting concluded. Contact Greg Knowler at greg.knowler@spglobal.com .

Transport, Trade and Regulation News

Maritime

IMO punts on pivotal net-zero shipping regulation

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">Tariffs have increased sixfold since January, but those cost increases have yet to fully reveal themselves in consumer prices.</div>

Tariffs have increased sixfold since January, but those cost increases have yet to fully reveal themselves in consumer prices.

<div class="phx-topic">Norfolk, Virginia — US tariffs haven’t yet had a clear impact on inflation but could soon reveal themselves as a <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/tariff-uncertainty-to-keep-lid-on-us-import-growth-until-spring-retailers-6094200">hindrance on economic growth</a>, Renee Haltom, vice president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, told the Virginia Maritime Association’s International Trade Symposium Thursday. Haltom’s assessment of the impact of tariffs comes amid an environment where overall tariff levels are on average six times higher than they were in January, and ahead of a threatened 100% tariffs on goods from China starting Nov. 1. But, so far, the impact has been muted by a range of factors that have delayed the assessment of tariffs on importers, who have frontloaded volumes during windows in which tariff levels on Chinese goods have been relaxed. “The key question is, are tariffs a one-time price increase,” she said. “In principle, you pass a tariff and those adjustment costs happen right away, and then we all move on with our lives. Inflation isn’t sustainably higher with just a one-time price increase. So, the question is, this going to be this one-time adjustment cost, or is it going to be something more long-lasting?” Haltom said that past tariffs have tended to have a predictable economic effect: Every 10% increase in tariffs results in a 1% increase in prices. “Thinking about the current tariffs levels, which are pretty high, that would be a pretty large increase in prices that we just haven’t seen yet,” she said. There are a number of factors leading to the lack of impact tariffs have had on inflation, Haltom explained. First, there’s been a <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/strong-spending-lean-inventories-could-spur-us-import-rebound-in-early-2026-6099089">lag between the announced tariffs</a>and what has actually been assessed, largely due to grace periods on implementations and exemptions for certain products or companies. Second, there’s a delay between when tariffs are incurred by importers, and when those importers can pass some or all the costs of the tariffs into consumer prices. “That delay is about waiting to see which tariffs are going to stick, because tariff policies are up and down and on and off,” she said. “I don’t want to anger my customers if there’s a chance this is going to go away.” Businesses are engaging in what Haltom called “elasticity testing,” where they might increase the price of a product with inelastic demand, but hold tight on prices in categories where consumers are price sensitive. There’s also an element of watching competitors’ prices that keeps inflation in check, she added. A third element to consider is that, according to Haltom, “businesses say that if your customers are other businesses, you’re going to try to pass it through, but if your customers are consumers and households, they’re not pushing that hard.” Overall, Haltom said the US economy is in a relatively stable position. Household debt relative to income is, on a historical basis, not high. Unemployment is at its lowest level in more than 60 years, largely due to a shrinking labor-ready pool due to retirements and the Trump administration curtailing of immigration. Contact Eric Johnson at eric.johnson@spglobal.com. </div>

Norfolk, Virginia — US tariffs haven’t yet had a clear impact on inflation but could soon reveal themselves as a hindrance on economic growth , Renee Haltom, vice president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, told the Virginia Maritime Association’s International Trade Symposium Thursday. Haltom’s assessment of the impact of tariffs comes amid an environment where overall tariff levels are on average six times higher than they were in January, and ahead of a threatened 100% tariffs on goods from China starting Nov. 1. But, so far, the impact has been muted by a range of factors that have delayed the assessment of tariffs on importers, who have frontloaded volumes during windows in which tariff levels on Chinese goods have been relaxed. “The key question is, are tariffs a one-time price increase,” she said. “In principle, you pass a tariff and those adjustment costs happen right away, and then we all move on with our lives. Inflation isn’t sustainably higher with just a one-time price increase. So, the question is, this going to be this one-time adjustment cost, or is it going to be something more long-lasting?” Haltom said that past tariffs have tended to have a predictable economic effect: Every 10% increase in tariffs results in a 1% increase in prices. “Thinking about the current tariffs levels, which are pretty high, that would be a pretty large increase in prices that we just haven’t seen yet,” she said. There are a number of factors leading to the lack of impact tariffs have had on inflation, Haltom explained. First, there’s been a lag between the announced tariffs and what has actually been assessed, largely due to grace periods on implementations and exemptions for certain products or companies. Second, there’s a delay between when tariffs are incurred by importers, and when those importers can pass some or all the costs of the tariffs into consumer prices. “That delay is about waiting to see which tariffs are going to stick, because tariff policies are up and down and on and off,” she said. “I don’t want to anger my customers if there’s a chance this is going to go away.” Businesses are engaging in what Haltom called “elasticity testing,” where they might increase the price of a product with inelastic demand, but hold tight on prices in categories where consumers are price sensitive. There’s also an element of watching competitors’ prices that keeps inflation in check, she added. A third element to consider is that, according to Haltom, “businesses say that if your customers are other businesses, you’re going to try to pass it through, but if your customers are consumers and households, they’re not pushing that hard.” Overall, Haltom said the US economy is in a relatively stable position. Household debt relative to income is, on a historical basis, not high. Unemployment is at its lowest level in more than 60 years, largely due to a shrinking labor-ready pool due to retirements and the Trump administration curtailing of immigration. Contact Eric Johnson at eric.johnson@spglobal.com.

Trans-Pacific

Importers await tariff impact amid stable economic indicators: Richmond Fed

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">Some carriers and forward are predicting a strong recovery in volumes in the first quarter of next year despite US retailers’ downward expectations. </div>

Some carriers and forward are predicting a strong recovery in volumes in the first quarter of next year despite US retailers’ downward expectations.

<div class="phx-topic">Trans-Pacific imports fell off a cliff in September, tumbling 11.8% year over year, according to PIERS, but the absence of an obvious pullback in consumer spending or economic slowdown has some carriers and forwarders predicting a strong recovery in volumes in the first quarter of next year. The story of 2025 has been one of frontloading US imports to avoid higher tariffs. But warehouses and gateway ports like Los Angeles-Long Beach are completely fluid despite handing more cargo over the summer than they did at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2022. <div class="wrapper-narrow float-right-element"><img src="/images/phoenix/6099145_0.1.jpg"></img></div>This points to goods flowing through the system through to final sale, which supports the view, as reported by several US-based banks in recent earnings calls, that consumer spending remains solid. Container dwell times at Los Angeles and Long Beach terminals have been relatively low all year, outside of a brief spike in rail container dwells in the first quarter, according to data from the Pacific Merchant Shipping Association. Intermodal equipment providers tell the Journal of Commerce chassis are being returned more quicky, indicating containerized cargo is arriving at warehouses and being quickly unloaded for onward distribution. With US consumer spending holding up, evidence points to inventory not piling up but rather moving through the supply chain and being sold. To some veteran freight professionals, that suggests retailers will need more freight, and soon. “We see an overcorrection occurring on US imports, which we think will result in a very strong bounce back in the first quarter,” said Trond Prestroenning, CEO for the Americas region at Hamburg-based forwarder Fr. Meyer’s Sohn. “In the first quarter of 2026, there will be a mini revival similar to COVID in terms of volumes,” said a senior US-based carrier executive. “Warehouses are depleted and you can see some real movement of volume, and space will become tight.” The falloff following widespread frontloading that resulted in an early peak season materialized in September, with total US imports down more than 9% from August and 8% year over year, according to data from PIERS, a sister company of the Journal of Commerce within S&amp;P Global. That came after volumes grew more than 5% in the first seven months of the year. And those volume declines are <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/tariff-uncertainty-to-keep-lid-on-us-import-growth-until-spring-retailers-6094200">forecast to accelerate through the remainder of the year</a> in what looks like a pronounced post-peak season lull. The Global Port Tracker report, co-written by Hackett Associates and the National Retail Federation, projects total US imports will fall 12.3% year over year in October, 19.2% in November and 19.4% in December and remain below 2025 levels through at least February. “This year’s peak season has come and gone, largely due to retailers frontloading imports ahead of reciprocal tariffs taking effect,” Jonathan Gold, vice president for supply chain and customs policy at the NRF, said in the October Global Port Tracker report. Yet, there is no evidence to suggest a massive pileup of inventory in the US, with stocks remaining roughly aligned with demand. Inventory-to-sales ratios for retailers and manufacturers — which have hovered between 1.28 and 1.32 this year, according to the US Bureau of Economic Analysis — suggest that businesses “are holding leaner inventories than expected amid the frontloading narrative,” Maersk said in an Oct. 1 market update. Inventory-to-sales ratios compare the value of a company’s inventory to net sales and provide a measure of how quickly inventory moves off the shelf. These relatively lean inventories come amid what has been, so far, a limited economic fallout from tariffs and stubborn inflation. US GDP growth is forecast at 2.3% next year, down slightly from the prior forecast of 2.4%, according to S&amp;P Global Market Intelligence. That is leading to optimism in some segments of the supply chain, like warehouse space. “Demand has clearly turned a corner. The market is in an inflection point,” Christopher Caton, senior vice president and global head of research at Prologis, Inc. told investors on Oct. 15, as reported by CapIQ Pro. Contact Peter Tirschwell at <a href="mailto:peter.tirschwell@spglobal.com">peter.tirschwell@spglobal.com</a>. </div>

Trans-Pacific imports fell off a cliff in September, tumbling 11.8% year over year, according to PIERS, but the absence of an obvious pullback in consumer spending or economic slowdown has some carriers and forwarders predicting a strong recovery in volumes in the first quarter of next year. The story of 2025 has been one of frontloading US imports to avoid higher tariffs. But warehouses and gateway ports like Los Angeles-Long Beach are completely fluid despite handing more cargo over the summer than they did at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2022. This points to goods flowing through the system through to final sale, which supports the view, as reported by several US-based banks in recent earnings calls, that consumer spending remains solid. Container dwell times at Los Angeles and Long Beach terminals have been relatively low all year, outside of a brief spike in rail container dwells in the first quarter, according to data from the Pacific Merchant Shipping Association. Intermodal equipment providers tell the Journal of Commerce chassis are being returned more quicky, indicating containerized cargo is arriving at warehouses and being quickly unloaded for onward distribution. With US consumer spending holding up, evidence points to inventory not piling up but rather moving through the supply chain and being sold. To some veteran freight professionals, that suggests retailers will need more freight, and soon. “We see an overcorrection occurring on US imports, which we think will result in a very strong bounce back in the first quarter,” said Trond Prestroenning, CEO for the Americas region at Hamburg-based forwarder Fr. Meyer’s Sohn. “In the first quarter of 2026, there will be a mini revival similar to COVID in terms of volumes,” said a senior US-based carrier executive. “Warehouses are depleted and you can see some real movement of volume, and space will become tight.” The falloff following widespread frontloading that resulted in an early peak season materialized in September, with total US imports down more than 9% from August and 8% year over year, according to data from PIERS, a sister company of the Journal of Commerce within S&P Global. That came after volumes grew more than 5% in the first seven months of the year. And those volume declines are forecast to accelerate through the remainder of the year in what looks like a pronounced post-peak season lull. The Global Port Tracker report, co-written by Hackett Associates and the National Retail Federation, projects total US imports will fall 12.3% year over year in October, 19.2% in November and 19.4% in December and remain below 2025 levels through at least February. “This year’s peak season has come and gone, largely due to retailers frontloading imports ahead of reciprocal tariffs taking effect,” Jonathan Gold, vice president for supply chain and customs policy at the NRF, said in the October Global Port Tracker report. Yet, there is no evidence to suggest a massive pileup of inventory in the US, with stocks remaining roughly aligned with demand. Inventory-to-sales ratios for retailers and manufacturers — which have hovered between 1.28 and 1.32 this year, according to the US Bureau of Economic Analysis — suggest that businesses “are holding leaner inventories than expected amid the frontloading narrative,” Maersk said in an Oct. 1 market update. Inventory-to-sales ratios compare the value of a company’s inventory to net sales and provide a measure of how quickly inventory moves off the shelf. These relatively lean inventories come amid what has been, so far, a limited economic fallout from tariffs and stubborn inflation. US GDP growth is forecast at 2.3% next year, down slightly from the prior forecast of 2.4%, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence. That is leading to optimism in some segments of the supply chain, like warehouse space. “Demand has clearly turned a corner. The market is in an inflection point,” Christopher Caton, senior vice president and global head of research at Prologis, Inc. told investors on Oct. 15, as reported by CapIQ Pro. Contact Peter Tirschwell at peter.tirschwell@spglobal.com .

Container Shipping News

Supply chain

Strong spending, lean inventories could spur US import rebound in early 2026

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">J.B. Hunt lowered its peak season surcharge because of disappointing volume on the West Coast.</div>

J.B. Hunt lowered its peak season surcharge because of disappointing volume on the West Coast.

<div class="phx-topic">J.B. Hunt Transport Services said demand for its intermodal business remained soft in the third quarter, particularly on the West Coast, where transcontinental container loads fell 6% from a year earlier, as total rail shipments declined 1% overall. In describing the overall freight market, the company remarked that “it’s no secret, the market hasn’t returned yet,” which has now surpassed three years. The nation’s largest domestic intermodal provider rolled out an early peak-season surcharge in July of $1,500 per container in Los Angeles, but the company <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/jb-hunt-reduces-peak-season-surcharge-on-southern-california-moves-6066323">later trimmed the fee to $800.</a> “We were disappointed in demand off the West Coast during the quarter and even adjusted our peak program in the middle of the quarter as an example,” said Darren Field, president of J.B. Hunt’s intermodal division. “Demand for our domestic intermodal service wasn’t all that strong.” Despite sluggish volume, executives said the peak season may not be finished because much of the cargo unloaded at West Coast ports this summer remains in local warehouses. “It is important to disconnect the timing of peak season on the water from peak season of the inland supply chain,” said Spencer Frazier, executive vice president of sales and marketing. “Our conversations indicate there is a large amount of freight that was imported early that hasn’t moved through the inland supply chain yet. No one has canceled Christmas.” There were some positive results despite the weaker third quarter in Southern California. Domestic intermodal operating income rose 12% year over year, contributing to an 8% increase in company-wide operating income. The company said aggressive cost controls shaved $20 million in costs during the quarter. <h3>East Coast intermodal doing better </h3>Local East Coast intermodal volume climbed 6% in the quarter, a signal that there is strength on containerized freight staying within the CSX Transportation and Norfolk Southern Railway (NS) networks. The carrier credited improved rail service for helping to shift more truckload freight to rail in the region. The Journal of Commerce Intermodal Service Z-Score, a measurement of how a railroad performs against its own history on three key service metrics, showed CSX and NS operated at or above average through the second-to-last week of the quarter. The final week’s data is unavailable because the US Surface Transportation Board, which publishes the metrics, is affected by the federal government shutdown. <div class="wrapper-narrow"><dynamic-object type="jocchartid" resource-id="128e25f2-064e-4956-afe3-0fe7d3c06552"></dynamic-object></div>Norfolk Southern CEO Mark George said Thursday at the Virginia Maritime Association conference that intermodal train speeds are up this year. “We’re delivering consistent service, trending about 90% on-time performance,” George said. “In fact, in September, we had a standout month, hitting 100% in intermodal plan compliance.” He added that international intermodal traffic has risen more than 3% year over year, while domestic volume has flatlined because of trade disruptions. The comments suggest either J.B. Hunt’s East Coast gains may be concentrated on the CSX network, or other NS domestic intermodal partners have struggled to sustain shipments. <h3>Not taking sides on UP-NS deal </h3>J.B. Hunt CEO Shelley Simpson addressed Union Pacific Railroad’s (UP’s) <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/major-rail-union-backs-up-ns-merger-after-job-protection-deal-6084510">proposed acquisition</a> of NS before US regulators, signaling that the company would neither endorse nor oppose the transaction. “Our decades of experience, including navigating seven prior Class I railroad mergers and our thoughtfully developed long-term agreements and strong relationships with NS, CSX, and BNSF should provide the basis for us to accept any changes in the industry,” she said Wednesday. J.B. Hunt’s Field pushed back on speculation that a merger would force J.B. Hunt to shift all East Coast traffic to CSX. The assumption stems from the carrier’s long-standing partnership with BNSF Railway under the “Quantum Agreement,” a revenue-sharing arrangement formed more than 35 years ago that gives J.B. Hunt a pricing edge over competitors. It also launched a <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/j-b-hunt-bnsf-launch-new-intermodal-service-to-grab-time-sensitive-freight-5215574">Quantum service product</a> two years ago with a 95% on-time intermodal performance guarantee supported by J.B. Hunt staff embedded at BNSF’s headquarters in Texas. In recent months, BNSF and CSX have deepened their relationship, launching coast-to-coast intermodal routes linking Southern California <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/bnsf-csx-unveil-new-joint-intermodal-lanes-in-aftermath-of-up-ns-merger-6067789">with Charlotte and Jacksonville</a>. Other coast-to-coast routes to the Northeast <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/csx-restarts-baltimore-tunnel-service-for-double-stack-in-2026-6087384">may be announced next year</a> after CSX begins double-stack intermodal service through Baltimore next spring. This budding partnership has fueled speculation that J.B. Hunt could edge closer to CSX along with BNSF. Many West Coast rail contracts include exclusivity clauses preventing companies such as Hub Group or Schneider National from using BNSF in markets where UP also runs. J.B. Hunt’s BNSF deals carry similar restrictions, making it unlikely the carrier would be permitted to shift volume onto a merged UP-NS network in BNSF-served territories. Even so, J.B. Hunt could continue using a combined UP-NS network for freight to stay east of the Mississippi, where BNSF has no presence. “Any future merger that would be approved for whatever reason has been perceived that J.B. Hunt would have to move our traffic to CSX and that’s not accurate at all,” Field said. “There’s nothing about a future state new railroad that would mean our current Norfolk Southern footprint that we have today would be required to change.” Contact Ari Ashe at <a href="mailto:ari.ashe@spglobal.com">ari.ashe@spglobal.com</a>. Senior Editor Eric Johnson contributed to this report. </div>

J.B. Hunt Transport Services said demand for its intermodal business remained soft in the third quarter, particularly on the West Coast, where transcontinental container loads fell 6% from a year earlier, as total rail shipments declined 1% overall. In describing the overall freight market, the company remarked that “it’s no secret, the market hasn’t returned yet,” which has now surpassed three years. The nation’s largest domestic intermodal provider rolled out an early peak-season surcharge in July of $1,500 per container in Los Angeles, but the company later trimmed the fee to $800. “We were disappointed in demand off the West Coast during the quarter and even adjusted our peak program in the middle of the quarter as an example,” said Darren Field, president of J.B. Hunt’s intermodal division. “Demand for our domestic intermodal service wasn’t all that strong.” Despite sluggish volume, executives said the peak season may not be finished because much of the cargo unloaded at West Coast ports this summer remains in local warehouses. “It is important to disconnect the timing of peak season on the water from peak season of the inland supply chain,” said Spencer Frazier, executive vice president of sales and marketing. “Our conversations indicate there is a large amount of freight that was imported early that hasn’t moved through the inland supply chain yet. No one has canceled Christmas.” There were some positive results despite the weaker third quarter in Southern California. Domestic intermodal operating income rose 12% year over year, contributing to an 8% increase in company-wide operating income. The company said aggressive cost controls shaved $20 million in costs during the quarter. East Coast intermodal doing better Local East Coast intermodal volume climbed 6% in the quarter, a signal that there is strength on containerized freight staying within the CSX Transportation and Norfolk Southern Railway (NS) networks. The carrier credited improved rail service for helping to shift more truckload freight to rail in the region. The Journal of Commerce Intermodal Service Z-Score, a measurement of how a railroad performs against its own history on three key service metrics, showed CSX and NS operated at or above average through the second-to-last week of the quarter. The final week’s data is unavailable because the US Surface Transportation Board, which publishes the metrics, is affected by the federal government shutdown. Norfolk Southern CEO Mark George said Thursday at the Virginia Maritime Association conference that intermodal train speeds are up this year. “We’re delivering consistent service, trending about 90% on-time performance,” George said. “In fact, in September, we had a standout month, hitting 100% in intermodal plan compliance.” He added that international intermodal traffic has risen more than 3% year over year, while domestic volume has flatlined because of trade disruptions. The comments suggest either J.B. Hunt’s East Coast gains may be concentrated on the CSX network, or other NS domestic intermodal partners have struggled to sustain shipments. Not taking sides on UP-NS deal J.B. Hunt CEO Shelley Simpson addressed Union Pacific Railroad’s (UP’s) proposed acquisition of NS before US regulators, signaling that the company would neither endorse nor oppose the transaction. “Our decades of experience, including navigating seven prior Class I railroad mergers and our thoughtfully developed long-term agreements and strong relationships with NS, CSX, and BNSF should provide the basis for us to accept any changes in the industry,” she said Wednesday. J.B. Hunt’s Field pushed back on speculation that a merger would force J.B. Hunt to shift all East Coast traffic to CSX. The assumption stems from the carrier’s long-standing partnership with BNSF Railway under the “Quantum Agreement,” a revenue-sharing arrangement formed more than 35 years ago that gives J.B. Hunt a pricing edge over competitors. It also launched a Quantum service product two years ago with a 95% on-time intermodal performance guarantee supported by J.B. Hunt staff embedded at BNSF’s headquarters in Texas. In recent months, BNSF and CSX have deepened their relationship, launching coast-to-coast intermodal routes linking Southern California with Charlotte and Jacksonville . Other coast-to-coast routes to the Northeast may be announced next year after CSX begins double-stack intermodal service through Baltimore next spring. This budding partnership has fueled speculation that J.B. Hunt could edge closer to CSX along with BNSF. Many West Coast rail contracts include exclusivity clauses preventing companies such as Hub Group or Schneider National from using BNSF in markets where UP also runs. J.B. Hunt’s BNSF deals carry similar restrictions, making it unlikely the carrier would be permitted to shift volume onto a merged UP-NS network in BNSF-served territories. Even so, J.B. Hunt could continue using a combined UP-NS network for freight to stay east of the Mississippi, where BNSF has no presence. “Any future merger that would be approved for whatever reason has been perceived that J.B. Hunt would have to move our traffic to CSX and that’s not accurate at all,” Field said. “There’s nothing about a future state new railroad that would mean our current Norfolk Southern footprint that we have today would be required to change.” Contact Ari Ashe at ari.ashe@spglobal.com . Senior Editor Eric Johnson contributed to this report.

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J.B. Hunt: Intermodal volume retracts amid cost-cutting measures

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">The investment in less carbon-intensive vessels is part of a $17 billion spending plan that also includes $3 billion on its logistics business and the acquisition of new container terminals by 2030.</div>

The investment in less carbon-intensive vessels is part of a $17 billion spending plan that also includes $3 billion on its logistics business and the acquisition of new container terminals by 2030.

<div class="phx-topic">HMM is pushing full steam ahead with alternative-fuel vessel plans with new orders for a dozen container ships that will be capable of running on LNG. The South Korea-based ocean carrier on Thursday confirmed orders for 12 dual-fuel 13,000-TEU container vessels from HD Hyundai Heavy and Hanhwa Ocean worth a total of $2.55 billion. The deals are the first to be announced since HMM outlined plans in September to spend $8 billion on eco-friendly ships by 2030 to boost its operational fleet to 130 container ships totaling 1.55 million TEUs. The investment is part of a $17 billion spending plan that also includes $3 billion on its logistics business with the acquisition of new container terminals and extending existing facilities by 2030. Given their size, the new ships are likely to be deployed on the trans-Pacific trade between Asia and North America when delivered starting in 2027. The carrier has said it aims to be carbon-neutral across all transport modes by 2045. “By adding these new LNG dual-fueled vessels to its existing portfolio, which already includes methanol-powered containerships and LNG-powered vessels, HMM continues to strengthen its position in sustainable shipping,” the carrier said in a statement. <div class="wrapper-narrow"><dynamic-object type="jocchartid" resource-id="3ea23764-fec2-4391-b0e3-4c5cff1b6eee"></dynamic-object></div>Container lines have been laser focused on ordering alternative-fueled ships in recent years. More than three-quarters of the total 7.2 million TEUs of container ship capacity ordered since the beginning of 2024 will be capable of running on LNG, methanol or hydrogen, according to data from Sea-web, a sister product of the Journal of Commerce with S&amp;P Global. HMM alone ordered 41 LNG- and methanol-fueled ships between 2018 and 2023. These included nine 9,000-TEU methanol-powered vessels ordered in February 2023, the first of which, HMM Green, was delivered in March. The remaining eight will be delivered in 2026, the line said. Contact Keith Wallis at <a href="mailto:keithwallis@hotmail.com">keithwallis@hotmail.com</a>. </div>

HMM is pushing full steam ahead with alternative-fuel vessel plans with new orders for a dozen container ships that will be capable of running on LNG. The South Korea-based ocean carrier on Thursday confirmed orders for 12 dual-fuel 13,000-TEU container vessels from HD Hyundai Heavy and Hanhwa Ocean worth a total of $2.55 billion. The deals are the first to be announced since HMM outlined plans in September to spend $8 billion on eco-friendly ships by 2030 to boost its operational fleet to 130 container ships totaling 1.55 million TEUs. The investment is part of a $17 billion spending plan that also includes $3 billion on its logistics business with the acquisition of new container terminals and extending existing facilities by 2030. Given their size, the new ships are likely to be deployed on the trans-Pacific trade between Asia and North America when delivered starting in 2027. The carrier has said it aims to be carbon-neutral across all transport modes by 2045. “By adding these new LNG dual-fueled vessels to its existing portfolio, which already includes methanol-powered containerships and LNG-powered vessels, HMM continues to strengthen its position in sustainable shipping,” the carrier said in a statement. Container lines have been laser focused on ordering alternative-fueled ships in recent years. More than three-quarters of the total 7.2 million TEUs of container ship capacity ordered since the beginning of 2024 will be capable of running on LNG, methanol or hydrogen, according to data from Sea-web, a sister product of the Journal of Commerce with S&P Global. HMM alone ordered 41 LNG- and methanol-fueled ships between 2018 and 2023. These included nine 9,000-TEU methanol-powered vessels ordered in February 2023, the first of which, HMM Green, was delivered in March. The remaining eight will be delivered in 2026, the line said. Contact Keith Wallis at keithwallis@hotmail.com .

Container lines

HMM inks $2.5 billion LNG container ship order

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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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Filling the Supply Chain Education Gap with LTL Education Courses

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