Newsletter: March 28, 2022

OCEAN FREIGHT UPDATES

Shanghai goes into lockdown

splash247.com
On Sunday China announced Shanghai would enter a staggered lockdown, starting today, marking the biggest city-wide lockdown in the People’s Republic since the Covid outbreak began more than two years ago.
For shipping, congestion at the port – already very high – is expected to increase in the coming days, while overseas, terminals in Europe and North America will have to brace for an even larger whiplash effect when the city regains normal productivity – and comes as global supply chains absorb the fallout from a seven-day lockdown in Shenzhen to the south earlier this month. Read more here.

Softening Asia-Europe rates sees carriers move to offer short deals to SMEs

theloadstar.com
With Asia-North Europe container spot rates still falling, ocean carriers are now canvassing smaller shippers to agree short-term three-month contracts.
Staple three-month deals with forwarders and NVOCCs were all but suspended last year as carriers carefully choose the counter-parties they wanted for their long-term contracts of 12 months or more, with the remainder of shippers consigned to the spot market or, at best, offered rates valid for a month or less. Read more here (login required).

Five tugs set to take part in Ever Forward reflotation bid tomorrow

theloadstar.com
The first attempt to free the Evergreen ship Ever Forward, grounded in Chesapeake Bay on 13 March, is expected at tomorrow’s high tides at 2.11 am and, if necessary, the next at 3.08pm.
Baltimore Port executive director William Doyle said the first attempt to refloat the ship would use five tugs, two pushing on the vessel’s starboard side, two pulling from port side and the fifth pulling from the stern. Read more here.

GROUND AND RAIL FREIGHT UPDATES

B.C. ready to begin permanent Coquihalla Highway repairs

insidelogistics.ca
The Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure says it is moving ahead with permanent repairs to a key B.C. highway damaged by catastrophic flooding last November.
A statement from the ministry says it has begun the process to select contractors to design and complete the repairs at three of the seven damaged bridges along the Coquihalla Highway. Read more here.

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS – GOVERNMENT UPDATES

Blockchain drives transparency in the supply chain

supplychaindive.com
While blockchain is often talked about in relation to cryptocurrency (and grabs headlines for it), it’s already being used in supply chains to create greater visibility and transparency.
“If you think of supply chain today, and the volume of paper and faxes and email and data exchanges and phone calls that actually support the process, it seems pretty obvious that if you could get enough people to streamline those things using a common system and a common application, you could get a whole lot of value out of that process,” said Scott Buchholz, emerging technology research managing director at Deloitte. Read more here.