Ocean Shipping

From February to March, the report observed that U.S.-bound container import volumes eked out a 0.4% increase, to 2,145,341 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU), while posting a 15.7% annual gain, ahead of pre-pandemic 2019 by 20.6%. Descartes explained that the timing of the week-long Lunar New Year in Asia, which commenced on February 11 may have held import growth back, as the subsequent impact on U.S. import numbers was not realized until the last two weeks of March.

Amid various supply chain issues, United States retail container ports are expected to see imports top the 2-million mark in May for the first time since October, according to the new edition of the Port Tracker report, which was issued today by the National Retail Federation (NRF) and maritime consultancy Hackett Associates.

Turns out Baltimore needs the supply chain more than the supply chain needs Baltimore. In the wake of the March 26 horrific bridge collapse that closed the Port of Baltimore to maritime vessels, shutting down one of the busiest ports in America has meant … not that much to maritime shippers. They just moved freight to New York, Newport News, Va., or Savannah, Ga.

LM Group News Editor Jeff Berman recently caught up with Port of Oakland Maritime Director Bryan Brandes. Brandes addressed various topics, including Peak Season, volumes, and vessel alliances, among others.

FourKites and BuyCo are partnering up to enhance global shipping visibility, efficiency, and sustainability for major shippers.

One week after the tragic collapse of the Francis Scott Key bridge in Baltimore, the Maryland Port Authority (MPA) said it is making progress towards resuming cargo flows.

The collapse of the 47-year-old, 1.6-mile Francis Scott Key Bridge is going to have supply chain repercussions for months, if not longer, supply chain experts are saying.

Chicago-based supply chain visibility services provider project44 noted that in addition to the Dali, there are also three other container vessels currently moored in the Port of Baltimore. And for container vessels that were scheduled to arrive at the Port of Baltimore now re-routing to alternative ports, Everstream Analytics reported the following: four at the Port of New York and New Jersey; three at the Port of Norfolk; one at the Port of Philadelphia; and one unconfirmed.

Following yesterday’s bridge collision in Baltimore, when the 32,000-ton container ship, Dali, collided into the 1.6-mile Francis Scott Key bridge over the Patapsco River in Baltimore, causing it to collapse and stopping ship traffic at the Port of Baltimore, for an indefinite period, it has created yet another uncertain situation for supply chains.

February imports, at 2.44 million TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units) increased 21% compared to February 2023. And when taking into account, the timing of the Lunar New Year, coupled with the impact of ongoing Red Sea and Panama Canal disruptions, the firm explained that U.S.-bound imports over the first two months of 2024, at 5.04 million TEU, posted a 14% annual increase over 2023’s 4.40 million TEU,

February imports, at 2.44 million TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units) increased 21% compared to February 2023. And when taking into account the timing of the Lunar New Year, coupled with the impact of ongoing Red Sea and Panama Canal disruptions, the firm explained that U.S.-bound imports over the first two months of 2024, at 5.04 million TEU, posted a 14% annual increase over 2023’s 4.40 million TEU, with 2022 and 2021, at 5.21 million TEU and 5.09 million TEU, respectively.

Total POLA volume, at 781,434 TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), saw a 60% annual gain, and POLB reported that total February volume, at 674,723 TEU, increased 24.1% annually.

While 2023 marked the overdue conclusion of a new West Coast port labor agreement between the International Longshore Warehouse Union and the Pacific Maritime Association, an East Coast labor agreement awaits to be completed in 2024, by the end of September, between the International Longshoreman’s Association (ILA) and the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX).

In an advisory issued yesterday, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) announced a new adjustment to accommodate the growing demand for transits, by increasing the number of daily slots available in the Panamax Locks. ACP officials said that this announcement was made in response to the present and projected level of Gatun Lake.

In this podcast, Jeff Berman, Group News Editor for Logistics Management and the Peerless Media Supply Chain Group interviews Evan Armstrong, President of Brookfield, Wisc.-based supply chain consultancy Armstrong & Associates.