Import cargo volume at the nation's major retail container ports is expected to see a final surge and set a new monthly record in October as the holiday season approaches, according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report released by the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates.
The recovery of the ocean container industry – possibly by late 2016 or 2017 – is to be based around the formation of the new mega alliances and the continued reduction of unit costs, rather than the matching of supply and demand at the individual trade route level, according to Drewry's Container Annual Review & Forecast 2014/15. A different recovery is taking shape, which is unlikely to be built on any improvement in freight rates.
Total cargo shipments on the St. Lawrence Seaway have now surpassed 2013 levels by 5 percent due to strong North American import/export activity. According to the St. Lawrence Seaway, total cargo tonnage from March 25 to September 30 reached 24.4 million metric tons.
Denmark's A.P. Moller-Maersk said it would invest billions of dollars in new ships, reap hundreds of millions in savings and announced valuable contracts for its drilling rigs.
Total cargo shipments on the St. Lawrence Seaway have now surpassed 2013 levels despite one of the most difficult starts to the shipping season in years due to ice coverage. According to Seaway figures, total cargo tonnage from March 25 to August 31 reached 20 million metric tons, up 3 percent over the same period last year.
A vote for independence from the UK would have a negative effect on the Scottish shipping and offshore maritime sector, according to a survey by international accountant and shipping adviser Moore Stephens.
The International Maritime Bureau (IMB) is calling for vigilance in the maritime sector as it emerges that shipping and the supply chain is the "next playground for hackers."
The number of container ships afloat has decreased in the first half of 2014 and could fall on an annual basis this year, for the first time in at least 20 years. Although the total TEU nominal capacity of the global fleet continues to increase by about 6 percent a year, this growth in capacity now comes solely from the increase in average ship size, not from having more ships.
Declining in value by 3.3 percent from 2012, the freight forwarding market is facing major challenges as it fights to stay viable in a changing global environment. This is one of the main conclusions of the latest report from Transport Intelligence, Global Freight Forwarding 2014.
The Container Ship Safety Forum, a global business-to-business network to improve safety performance and management practices in the container shipping industry, has been launched.
