Ocean Freight

The company announced yesterday that as part of a “long-planned succession process”, effective May 9, Chief Operating Officer Robert ("Bob") Biesterfeld, will become Chief Executive Officer, as well as being nominated to stand for election to the company’s board of directors. Biesterfeld will replace C.H. Robinson Chairman and CEO John Wiehoff, whom will continue as Chairman of the Board when Biesterfeld becomes CEO.

Port Tracker reported that U.S.-based retail container ports handled 1.97 million TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), in December, the most recent month for which data is available. This represents an 8.8% increase compared to November and a 13.9% annual gain. Total 2018 volume, at 21.8 million TEU, topped 2017’s 20.5 million TEU by 6.2%, setting a new record in the process.

While the outcome had been predicted in industry circles, the verdict that Basel, Switzerland-based global 3PL and airfreight forwarder Panalpina will not be acquired by Hedehusene, Denmark-based global 3PL DSV is now official.

While the prospects for container shipping are brightening, downside risks of increased inward-looking policies and the rise of trade protectionism are weighing on the outlook for carriers.

Vessel owners were lucky to be able to run between continents well out of sight of government and non-government organizations for over a century.

A new report issued this week by the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) makes the case for the crucial need for roughly $4 billion in port and supply chain security needs over the next decade.

United States-bound waterborne shipments in December capped a record-breaking year for global trade, according to data issued this week by global trade intelligence firm Panjiva.

The Ocean Alliance, a collective ocean carrier concern comprised of COSCO Shipping, CMA CGM, Evergreen Marine, and Orient Overseas Container Line Limited (OOCL) introduced a new offering this week, entitled the Ocean Alliance Day 3 Product.

The push to beat pending tariffs on goods imported from China, which has been a major theme in global shipping for the last several months, showed signs of slowing in the most recent edition of the Port Tracker report.

Chicago-based third-party logistics (3PL) services provider SEKO Logistics recently announced it made an intra-city acquisition, with the purchase of GoodShip International, a customs brokerage and compliance consultancy.

All regions and trade lanes are expected to report profits for air and ocean carriers in 2019.

As we usher in 2019, many industry analysts are telling logistics managers to begin planning for a major transformational event coming into play for the ocean cargo sector a year from now.

November’s 1,005,001 shipments represented a 1.8% annual gain, with 2018 shipments through November, at 11,288,944, are up 6.1% annually. Panjiva said this tally also includes containerized shipments, which saw a 3.7% annual increase.

POLA handled 832,231 Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEU), marking the fifth consecutive month of volumes topping 800,000 TEU, and POLB November volumes, at 621,835 TEU, rose 1.5% annually.

This development represents a real change for the industry because, for the first time, global shipping on key trade lanes functions like passenger travel or ecommerce, where customers can obtain guaranteed prices within seconds.