Port News

The latest port news from the Journal of Commerce spans the globe from North Carolina and Florida to Shanghai and Singapore. Port news includes port automation, terminal construction projects, the future of decarbonization and net-zero shipping, dredging, port hinterland connectivity, labor, disruption, port congestion and cargo flow.

The latest Port News News & Analysis

Lawmakers push FMC to remove MTOs from demurrage billing requirements

Teri Errico Griffis, Associate Editor |
Two congress members, backed by terminal operators, are insisting maritime regulators follow the congressional intent that underpins OSRA-22 or risk “severe” disruptions to the US supply chain.
Transport, Trade, and Regulation NewsContainer Shipping NewsContainer linesMarine terminals

MSC reconnects India to Asia-USWC string as contract rates tick higher

Bency Mathew, Special Correspondent |
MSC, which has implemented large-scale network realignments in recent months, halted Indian calls on the Sentosa service in April when it opened a standalone intra-Asia loop.
Trans-PacificContainer Shipping NewsContainer linesNorth American portsInternational ports

Revised terminal leases give PANYNJ cut of CMA CGM’s demurrage revenue

Michael Angell, Associate Editor |
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said the new leases attempt to “strike a balance” to reflect current market realities, but other MTO sources called the practice of sharing demurrage uncommon.
North American portsContainer Shipping NewsContainer linesMarine terminals

US shippers should begin planning now for potential 2024 disruptions: analyst

Lars Jensen, CEO & Partner, Vespucci Maritime, and JOC Analyst |
In addition to the typical annual planning, such as for budgets and freight rates, US importers need to start weighing contingency plans for two potentially disruptive occurrences next year — continued low-water levels along the Panama Canal and the expiration of the International Longshoremen’s Association contract, writes Lars Jensen.
Container Shipping NewsContainer linesLongshore laborNorth American portsInternational ports

Hamburg follows North Europe port rivals with H1 volume decline

Greg Knowler, Senior Editor Europe |
Weak European demand for containerized trade through the first half is hurting port throughput at the region’s top three gateways, but signs are emerging of recovering volume on certain routes.
Port NewsContainer Shipping NewsTrans-AtlanticAsia-EuropeInternational ports

US July imports from Asia hit 11-month high, portending year-on-year fall growth

Bill Mongelluzzo, Senior Editor |
The fresh data also showed — starkly — how the West Coast’s share of imports from Asia eroded during the 13 months of contentious contract negotiations between the ILWU and waterfront employers.
Trans-PacificContainer Shipping NewsContainer linesNorth American ports

FMC ‘refusal of service’ rule risks overreacting to pandemic market

Peter Tirschwell |
The proposed rulemaking shows how far the pendulum of power has swung in favor of shippers seeking to hold carriers accountable for practices that occurred during the pandemic, but which were rarely experienced prior to that period, writes Peter Tirschwell.
Transport, Trade, and Regulation NewsContainer Shipping NewsContainer linesNorth American ports

Port Houston joins Portchain’s growing network for vessel arrival software

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
Portchain has pulled in 76 container terminals into its vessel arrival coordination platform with carriers in the past 18 months, with Port Houston the latest to join.
Logistics Technology NewsContainer Shipping NewsContainer linesPort NewsNorth American portsInternational ports

Western Canadian cargo flow returning to normal following labor agreement

Bill Mongelluzzo, Senior Editor |
Ports of Vancouver and Prince Rupert are clearing out the backlog of containers that built up during the two weeks of dockworker strikes in July, with no significant vessel, rail or trucking delays to report, according to stakeholders.
North American portsMarine terminalsLongshore labor

FMC walks tightrope on 'refusal of service' rulemaking

Mark Szakonyi, Executive Editor |
The clash between shippers and container lines highlights a major challenge for the FMC in finalizing rulemaking on when a carrier can refuse to serve shippers, most notably the risk that it could create a rule that’s so commercially restrictive that it’s unconstitutional.
Transport, Trade, and Regulation NewsContainer Shipping NewsContainer linesNorth American ports

New ships coming to trans-Pacific expected to overwhelm rate gains

Michael Angell, Associate Editor |
A sharp increase in new vessel deliveries over the coming weeks is forecast to put more pressure on ocean carriers to blank sailings — or face falling rates.
Container Shipping NewsTrans-PacificNorth American ports

Terminal operators launch renewed push to expand in emerging markets

Greg Knowler, Senior Editor Europe |
Demand for container shipping in major destination markets remains subdued, so some of the world’s largest port operators are channeling their attention — and money — on growing business in emerging nations.
Port NewsMarine terminalsInternational portsPort infrastructure

Most India-Europe rates falter amid shrinking export volumes

Bency Mathew, Special Correspondent |
Average rates from West India to Europe and the Mediterranean have cooled between 10 to 15% from what carriers were quoting at the end of July, deepening the slide seen over the past year.
Container Shipping NewsContainer linesInternational ports

Asia-US container spot rates keep rising amid more blank sailings

Bill Mongelluzzo, Senior Editor |
Spot rates in the eastbound trans-Pacific continue to move higher, although a planned general rate increase this week could be the last one for a while, as carriers are scheduled to add a significant amount of new capacity into the global fleet beginning later this year.
Trans-PacificContainer Shipping NewsContainer linesForwardingNorth American ports

Latest push in House for US shipping reform stalls, for now

Teri Errico Griffis, Associate Editor |
Stalled since May, the Ocean Shipping Reform Technical Act of 2023 may never be taken up by the House of Representatives as regulators are still struggling to implement last year’s original legislation.
Transport, Trade, and Regulation NewsContainer linesNorth American ports

Panama Canal delays raise risks for shippers, but not yet biting

Michael Angell, Associate Editor |
The Panama Canal’s limits on vessel drafts and transits have yet to make big impact on container shipping, but at least one forwarder is warning shippers not to be complacent.
Container Shipping NewsContainer linesNorth American ports

ILA flexes to fight on multiple beachheads

Michael Angell, Associate Editor |
Sources say USMX has made the ILA an offer on par with the increases the ILWU secured in its latest contract. However, the ILA also wants stronger protections for work jurisdiction and automation.
Longshore laborContainer Shipping NewsContainer linesNorth American ports

Parish lawsuit won’t derail new terminal project: Port NOLA CEO

Michael Angell, Associate Editor |
A district attorney for the parish that would be home to the proposed new Louisiana International Terminal alleges the Port of New Orleans has no legal basis to operate there.
North American portsContainer Shipping News

Ongoing office worker contract talks the lynchpin to West Coast labor peace

Bill Mongelluzzo, Senior Editor |
Negotiators for shipping lines and office workers in Los Angeles-Long Beach report that progress is being made in the ILWU Local 63 Office Clerical Unit (OCU) contract negotiations, but the two sides have work to do on the issues of wages, pension benefits and technology.
MaritimePort NewsLongshore laborNorth American ports

Revamped Southeast chassis pool to charge ‘penalty fee’ to unregistered users

Ari Ashe, Senior Editor |
Consolidated Chassis Management is asking cargo owners to encourage their trucking partners to sign up for the South Atlantic Chassis Pool (SACP) 3.0 before it launches in October.
Drayage

ILA seeks arbitration with carriers in new Leatherman suit

Michael Angell, Associate Editor, and Teri Griffis, Associate Editor |
The latest lawsuit from International Longshoremen’s Association ups the damages the union is seeking from ocean carriers that used the Port of Charleston’s Hugh K. Leatherman terminal.
Longshore laborContainer linesNorth American ports

Chassis maker CIE halts US equipment imports

Ari Ashe, Senior Editor |
CIE Manufacturing, a major manufacturer of new chassis, has suspended all imports of chassis into the US in response to an investigation by US customs officials.
DrayageNorth American ports

ILWU Canada contract ratification ensures BC port peace

Mark Szakonyi, Executive Editor |
The disruption laid bare the limits the Trudeau government will exercise to push both sides to a deal that was ratified Friday by longshore union membership at the ports of Vancouver and Prince Rupert.
Longshore laborContainer Shipping NewsContainer linesTrans-PacificNorth American portsTransport, Trade, and Regulation News

Ocean market shows signs of life despite forecasts for muted peak season

Peter Tirschwell |
While the magnitude of peak season in any given year may have macroeconomic significance in shedding light on the strength of consumer spending and the economy overall, it is only one factor driving the market conditions that affect the physical movement of goods, writes Peter Tirschwell.
Container Shipping NewsContainer linesTrans-PacificAsia-EuropeNorth American portsInternational ports

Hot summer turning up climate change heat on supply chains

Mark Szakonyi, Executive Editor |
Familiar reminders of the disruptions to supply chains caused by climate change, such as low water levels on the Rhine River and in the Panama Canal and wildfires in North America, are becoming more frequent and intense.
Supply chainContainer Shipping NewsPort infrastructureRail NewsNorth-American rail

EU carbon tax’s long reach to affect global rates, vessel deployments: analyst

Lars Jensen, CEO & Partner, Vespucci Maritime, and Journal of Commerce analyst |
Inclusion in the European Union’s emissions trading system will affect not only the cost of shipping to and from the EU, but will likely put upward pressure on pricing for cargo that doesn’t touch the EU at all, writes analyst Lars Jensen.
Container Shipping NewsContainer linesTrans-AtlanticAsia-EuropePort NewsTransport, Trade, and Regulation News

House bill would allow use of tax-deferred income to fund cargo equipment upgrades

Teri Errico Griffis, Associate Editor |
The National Association of Waterfront Employees says terminal operators are potentially on the hook for “tens of billions of dollars” to upgrade their cargo handling equipment and allowing them to use tax-deferred funds would increase their purchasing power.
Transport, Trade, and Regulation NewsNorth American portsPort infrastructure

Disruptive 2022 does little to upset global container port rankings

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
Half of the world’s top 50 container ports grew their volumes last year while the other half saw declines, highlighting the contrasting fortunes of the global gateways.
Port NewsNorth American portsInternational portsSupply chain

Europe pulls ahead of US as key lane for South America container trade

Keith Wallis, Special Correspondent |
The value of Brazil’s exports to European and Mediterranean countries is rising faster than those to the US, while Europe is also increasingly taking a greater share of Brazilian exports in percentage terms, trade figures show.
Container Shipping NewsContainer linesNorth American portsInternational ports

Western Canada port operations normal as next union contract vote looms

Bill Mongelluzzo, Senior Editor |
Negotiators for ILWU Canada and waterfront employers reached a second tentative contract agreement late Sunday after the union’s membership rejected an initial deal that had been struck last week.
MaritimeLongshore laborNorth American ports

ILWU Canada’s contract rejection thrusts BC ports in limbo

Mark Szakonyi, Executive Editor |
The membership of the International Longshore Warehouse Union Canada has rejected a four-year contract at the ports of Vancouver and Prince Rupert, which employers say would have included a 19.2%. compounded wage increase.
Longshore laborContainer Shipping NewsTrans-PacificNorth American portsTransport, Trade, and Regulation News

Court denies SC Ports appeal of Leatherman ruling

Michael Angell, Associate Editor |
The latest decision upheld an initial ruling by the National Labor Relations Board that allowed the International Longshoremen’s Association to sue ocean carriers that called Charleston’s Leatherman terminal.
Longshore laborContainer Shipping NewsContainer linesNorth American ports

FMC’s Dye offers fixes for container flow problems through US ports

Teri Errico Griffis, Associate Editor |
The FMC commissioner wants to implement uniform empty return dates and define “container availability” as when the container is available for pick up, among other proposals.
Transport, Trade, and Regulation NewsContainer Shipping NewsMarine terminalsNorth American portsTrucking NewsLogistics Technology News

Cargo flow woes persist at India’s Mundra Port after cyclone disruption

Bency Mathew, Special Correspondent |
Concerned over the trade chaos at Mundra, India’s Container Shipping Lines Association said that vessel scheduling on services out of the country had become a major challenge for carriers.
International portsContainer Shipping NewsContainer lines

Ample Southern California warehouse space awaits muted peak season

Bill Mongelluzzo, Senior Editor |
After three years of operating at full capacity, warehouses and distribution centers outside the Los Angeles-Long Beach port complex are gaining space by shedding excess inventory, and a peak season that some say will be non-existent is not expected to disrupt that newfound fluidity.
MaritimeNorth American portsSupply chainLast Mile News

Local issues stymie movement on new master contract between ILA, USMX

Michael Angell, Associate Editor |
Only local unions at the ports of New York and New Jersey and Baltimore have come to tentative terms on local issues, with the ILA’s chief negotiator saying employers in other ports “have not taken the talks seriously.”
Longshore laborContainer Shipping NewsNorth American ports

Port of Oakland taps visibility provider to plug gaps in container status

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
Technology provider QuayChain will arm the Port of Oakland with milestone data in areas near its facilities to improve its visibility portal.
North American portsPort NewsSupply chainLogistics Technology News

Western Canada port backlog to take weeks to clear: Canadian National

Mark Szakonyi, Executive Editor |
CN said it will take up to eight weeks to clear the cargo backlog at the ports of Vancouver and Prince Rupert as the industry waits to see if ILWU Canada’s rank and file will accept terms of the tentative deal reached last week.
North-American railContainer Shipping NewsTrans-PacificNorth American portsIntermodal providers

New Jersey port stakeholders say state police ready for oversight task

Michael Angell, Associate Editor |
Maritime employers expect New Jersey State Police oversight of longshore hiring in the state will be easier and less burdensome than it was under the soon-to-be dissolved Waterfront Commission.
North American portsMarine terminalsLongshore labor

ILA chief calls for global union fight against port, maritime automation

Michael Angell, Associate Editor |
The president of the International Longshoremen’s Association says automation and new technology are an existential threat to union members and other maritime employees worldwide.
Longshore laborContainer linesMarine terminalsNorth American ports