Michael King

As a potential East Coast dockworkers’ strike looms in October, shippers turning to air freight to stock holiday inventory face surging prices and capacity shortages. September 17, 2024  Air cargo markets are expected to overheat during the upcoming fourth-quarter peak season, with rising prices and limited capacity now almost inevitable. Even before the holiday shipping…

With contract negotiations at a stalemate, the possibility of a U.S. East Coast dockworkers’ strike threatens to paralyze global container shipping, impacting millions of TEUs and leaving terminals idle. September 5, 2024 Global container shipping markets could face a significant shock, one that they are ill-prepared to handle, if dockworkers at U.S. ports go on…

August 8, 2024 Shippers should anticipate continued volatility in container shipping freight markets through 2025, with even the re-start of operations through the Suez Canal not guaranteeing immediate respite from disruptions and soaring freight rates, according to Lars Jensen, CEO of Vespucci Maritime. The renowned container shipping analyst and consultant outlined various Red Sea crisis…

• Air cargo demand will enjoy a sustained boost as Chinese e-retailers such as Temu and Shein attempt to establish sizeable market share in the US. • However, following a strategy previously trailblazed by Amazon, more sustainable ocean-based supply chains will eventually emerge, Dimerco Express Group’s Kathy Liu tells the latest episode of The Freight…

A reopening of the Suez Canal for container ship transits would see vessel oversupply swamp the market, Hua Joo Tan, Founder of LINERLYTICA, tells the latest episode of The Freight Buyers’ Club podcast. However, he deems this scenario unlikely, and expects rates to strengthen in the coming weeks. April 29, 2024 The longevity of the…

Small and medium-sized companies hoping to compete against larger corporations in international markets will increasingly rely on logistics partners to help them navigate rising trade barriers and cross-border transaction costs, economist and author Marc Levinson tells the latest episode of The Freight Buyers’ Club. Levinson also questions whether the largest container vessels are fit for…

“I don’t know if you could call it an early peak season, but certainly everybody has moved their shipping schedules up,” Jon Monroe, President, Jon Monroe Consulting, tells the latest episode of The Freight Buyers’ Club. The threat of major hikes in US import tariffs, combined with the fear of union action at East Coast ports…

The container shipping schedule reliability targets promised by Gemini Cooperation, the new Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd partnership which will start operating services in February 2025, have the potential to be transformative for customers and carrier alliances, according to leading shippers. “I think it’s doable and I think it will then potentially reshape the entire shipping world,”…

Some container traffic that migrated to US Gulf and East Coast ports in recent years is now being switched back to West Coast gateways by retailers and forwarders desperate to avoid supply chain disruption. Low water on the Panama Canal and the de facto closure of the Suez Canal to container shipping due to Houthi…

Philip Damas, Managing Director of Drewry Shipping Consultants and Head of Drewry’s Supply Chain Advisors practice, also told the latest episode of The Freight Buyers’ Club podcast that shippers negotiating new long-term ocean freight contracts should carefully scrutinise surcharges as well as rates. Container lines will use a variety of methods to minimise losses due…