Newsletter: March 18, 2022

OCEAN FREIGHT UPDATES

Shenzhen partially lifts lockdown

splash247.com
Shippers will be relieved with news from Shenzhen where local authorities are easing lockdown rules as a Covid scare passes without too great damage to supply chains, especially compared to an outbreak last summer that wiped out three-quarters of the vital boxport’s productivity for three weeks. Read more here.

Pay-Anything Mentality Grips U.S. Importers Fearful of More Shipping Woes

gcaptain.com
U.S. importers, straining under a tapped-out supply chain, are increasingly offering top dollar for long-term shipping contracts that may not even be honored as they try whatever it takes to guarantee the arrival of their products.
The pandemic-driven boom in demand for goods pushed both contract and spot rates for shipping to records — getting merchandise from place to place costs about 11 times more than it did before the Covid-19 outbreak. With demand so high and capacity limited, importers are paying up to avoid a repeat of 2021, when some contracts set at lower prices weren’t honored, leaving customers without their stuff. Read more here.

With spot rates falling, carriers blank more sailings and plan surcharges

theloadstar.com
Container spot rates continued their decline this week across most Chinese export routes, prompting ocean carriers to blank more sailings.
The Ningbo Containerized Freight Index (NCFI) today recorded falls on all but five of the 21 routes covered by its composite index, shedding a further 1.7%, to 3,613.9 points. Read more here (login required).

Ever Forward deep in mud, likely to be a ‘prolonged salvage’

splash247.com
Evergreen, owner of the Ever Forward ship that remains aground off Baltimore, has engaged Donjon-Smit as the salvage company in the operation to refloat the vessel. The ship has been stuck in mud since Sunday night, when it left the Port of Baltimore en route to Norfolk, Virginia. Read more here. 

GROUND AND RAIL FREIGHT UPDATES

Canada’s spot market continues record-setting load growth

trucknews.com
Canada’s spot market continues to offer an abundance of loads, “with no signs of slowing down any time soon,” according to Loadlink Technologies.
February volumes were up 171% year over year, and even beat January’s record highs by 21%. Read more here.

TCRC Responds to CP’s ‘Misleading Statements’

The Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) has issued a statement related to its ongoing negotiations with CP.
“As we continue to bargain in good faith,” it says, “we are extremely disappointed to see the misleading statements released by CP, and the inaccurate picture being painted.”
Read more in the press release 

CANADA BUSINESS – GOVERNMENT UPDATES

Canada Drops All COVID Testing Requirements For Vaccinated International Passengers From April 1st

simpleflying.com
In a significant move towards reopening borders, the Canadian government today announced discontinuing all Covid-related testing requirements for fully vaccinated international passengers arriving in Canada. The new rules are applicable for travelers entering the North American country by land, air, and water. Read more here.