UPS said that the five-year agreement covers U.S. Teamsters-represented employees in small package roles and is subject to ratification by union members.

Even before Russia terminated the Black Sea agreement, Ukraine had increasingly relied on alternative routes for its exports.

Wheat prices grew by 8.2% on the European stock exchange from July 18 to July 19 while U.S. wheat futures rose by 8.5%. 

The country didn’t export a single LNG cargo during June and has dispatched only one shipment so far in July.

Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and Poland will still let Ukrainian food exports move through their land to other parts of the world.

ILWU Canada said that it did not believe the recommendations proposed by mediators would sufficiently protect port workers’ jobs now or in the future.

A spokesperson said Russia would be suspending the Black Sea Grain Initiative until the country’s demands to export its goods to the rest of the world are met.

When water levels fall, it threatens to choke shipping on the waterways and raise transportation costs. 

The strike at ports that handle about a quarter of Canada’s total traded goods reduced arrivals of container ships and diverted vessels to U.S. facilities.

Labor disruptions during the first half of 2023 — which included strikes, layoffs and labor protests — grew by 136% year-on-year.