Freight Forwarders

Following a previous announcement earlier this week, in which key financial terms of a previously-announced deal were amended, Greenville, Tenn.-based asset-light freight and logistics services provider Forward Air said its acquisition of Dallas-based Omni Logistics, an asset-light, high-touch logistics and supply chain services provider owned by Ridgemont Equity Partners, is now official.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) late last month published a final rule titled "Broker and Freight Forwarder Financial Responsibility," which establishes procedures and requirements for the immediate suspension of broker and freight forwarder operating authority registration if the available financial security falls below $75,000.

The freight forwarding market continues to be negatively affected by the ripple effects of normalization in consumer behavior, as well as the global economic and manufacturing slowdown. Consequently, volumes handled by freight forwarders slowed down in the second half of 2022.

The period from mid-2020 to the fourth quarter of 2022 was a high-water mark for the container shipping industry, and with it came unprecedented turmoil, disruption, and prosperity, and that period was, above all, a period of extremes: extreme rate rises, extreme container and labor shortages, extreme delays, extreme congestion, and extreme chaos for exporters and importers alike, this time it's different.

Analysts expect the percentage of cargo booked and shipped through completely digital platforms to double to nearly 20% by 2024. To accommodate this rapid growth, large forwarders are investing heavily in digital offerings for booking, quoting, tracking, and invoicing—the ones who don’t will be left behind.

Echo officials said that Fastmore’s domestic operations are similar to those of Echo’s, with the real benefit of bringing Fastmore into the fold is that it offers up what it called a unique point of entry into an expansive network of expedited brokerage for the international freight forwarding market through various types of equipment, including: cargo vans, straight trucks, and full truckload.

Recently, logistics companies that have failed to comply with the regulations that govern exports have experienced more and significant penalties.

As savvy forwarders embrace and utilize more sophisticated digitized solutions to set them apart from the pack, industry analysts are seeing the race narrowing. Evidence of this trend is made clear when the Top 25 features nearly a half dozen players vying for the same coveted ranking.

The industry-wide collaboration announced in January advances as more than 90 organizations participate in the global trade solution with more than 154 million events captured on the platform and growing by one million per day.

As the digitization of freight forwarding is widely viewed as an ongoing process, a report issued this week by Freightos, a SaaS-enabled logistics technology provider focused on instant freight quotes for freight forwarders and shippers, highlights how the ongoing road towards digitization and will change customer service differentiation.

New trade agreements may drive long-term recovery, air freight logistics forecast, 2016 air freght

The freight forwarding market is going through a structural change with logistics stakeholders needing far more visibility into their supply chain in 2016.

Kewill worked with Transport Intelligence to examine the state of the global freight forwarding industry, and produced a report that provides an in-depth look at the issues confronting forwarders across the globe – and offers helpful suggestions on what they need to do to remain competitive.

By most reliable measures, the world’s freight forwarding sector is brightening considerably for the second straight year. But many analysts also maintain that only intermediaries with the most sustainable practices will thrive in tomorrow’s marketplace.

Forwarders who specialize in the controlled temperature marketplace are facing more regulations now than ever. But by bringing new technology into the fore, they can quickly meet compliance standards and differentiate their service. Here’s some advice for shippers looking to solve the “cold chain” challenge with the help of a third party.