Newsletter – April 26, 2021

AIR FREIGHT UPDATES

US puts new drone rules in force, regulating their use and utility

seanews.com.tr
THE US Department of Transportation has promulgated new rules on remotely identifying drones and allowing operators of small drones to fly over people and at night under certain conditions, reports the American Journal of Transpiration.
‘Today’s rules are an important first step in safely and securely managing the growing use of drones in our airspace, though more work remains on the journey to full integration of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS),’ said Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg.  Read more here.

OCEAN FREIGHT UPDATES

Longshoremen strike at Port of Montreal

splash247.com
Members of dockworkers’ union CUPE Local 375 will start an unlimited general strike at Canada’s Port of Montreal at 7:00 am ET on Monday morning. In effect, though, because the union had already refused weekend work as part of a partial strike starting on 17 April, strike action will have stopped work at the port on Friday. Mediation is scheduled to begin at 9:00 am. Read more here.

Ex-Shanghai ocean freight rates edge up to new record highs

lloydsloadinglist.com
Ex-Shanghai ocean freight rates edged up to new record highs last week due to continuing strong demand and ongoing bottlenecks and capacity constraints – exacerbated and prolonged by the knock-on effects of last month’s blockage of the Suez Canal. Read more here.

ILA sues after non-union labour unloads containers at new US terminal

theloadstar.com
ILA sues after non-union labour unloads containers at new US terminal
The US east coast is set for another bruising encounter between a dockworker union, shipping line and terminal operators.
The International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) has launched legal action against Hapag-Lloyd and the US Maritime Alliance. Read more here (login required).

Maersk’s Destination Cargo Management program reduces demurrage and detention exposure by 50%

maersk.com
Florham Park, New Jersey USA – Maersk North America’s Destination Cargo Management (DCM) product is designed to optimize destination planning and delivery in supply chains.  This segment holds the most opportunity for importers to reduce demurrage and detention (D&D) storage costs and improve end user experience. Read more here.

Los Angeles ports are slowly chipping away at their ship backlog

ajot.com
Ship congestion outside the busiest U.S. gateway for trade with Asia eased over the past week, with the number of container vessels waiting to enter the twin ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach staying below 20 for five straight days.
A total of 18 container ships were anchored awaiting entry into L.A.-Long Beach in Southern California, as of Sunday, compared with 20 a week earlier, according to officials who monitor marine traffic in San Pedro Bay. Read more here.

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS – GOVERNMENT UPDATES

In Cambodia, extended Phnom Penh coronavirus lockdown leaves garment workers, market vendors hungry

scmp.com
The Cambodian government’s two-week lockdown to contain a surge of Covid-19 cases in the capital, Phnom Penh, has cut off food supplies for thousands of garment workers, market vendors and others who survive on a day-to-day income.
Prime Minister Hun Sen announced the restrictions on April 14, which allowed only people in essential jobs such as delivery, restaurants and food and medical supply factories to work, with families permitted to visit markets three times a week. Days later, the government declared four communes and three villages “red zones”, banning residents from leaving their homes except for medical reasons. Read more here.

A ‘perfect storm’ is making it much more costly to produce food, but consumers might not feel it

financialpost.com
Some of the world’s largest food manufacturers are warning that soaring ingredient costs will force them to raise their product prices, but the head of a top Canadian supermarket chain on Wednesday said those increases won’t translate into higher grocery bills.
Consumer product multinationals, including Coca-Cola Co., Procter & Gamble Co. and J.M. Smucker Co., have started signalling that price hikes are on the way after a series of calamities — from the Texas winter storm to the Suez Canal blockage — overwhelmed global supply chains that were already reeling from the pandemic. Read more here.

EU Chief Says Vaccinated US Tourists May Visit This Summer

simpleflying.com
Big news for airlines as the head of the European Commission stated in an interview that fully vaccinated US tourists may be welcome this summer. While the details are still being worked out, Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, offers a huge glimmer of hope for airlines battered by the crisis and hoping to see some transatlantic action. Read more here.