Newsletter – July 27, 2022

AIR FREIGHT UPDATES

Lufthansa cancels over 1,000 flights due to ground staff walkout

reuters.com
BERLIN, July 26 (Reuters) – Deutsche Lufthansa (LHAG.DE) said it was cancelling more than 1,000 flights ahead of a one-day walkout by ground staff scheduled for Wednesday, just as families across Germany head off on their summer holidays.
Strikes and staff shortages have already forced airlines including Lufthansa to cancel thousands of flights and caused hours-long queues at major airports, frustrating holidaymakers keen to travel after COVID-19 related lockdowns. Read more here.

OCEAN FREIGHT UPDATES

Pandemic comes full circle with lockdown at the port city of Wuhan

splash247.com
The two-and-a-half year-long global pandemic has come full circle with news today of a lockdown at one of China’s largest river ports, Wuhan, the central Chinese city where covid was first detected.
A district containing around 1m people on the outskirts of Wuhan has been locked down. The city sits as a transport nexus for China, alongside the Yangtze and a major crossroads for road and rail. Read more here.

Job action looms at Vancouver port over truck age policy

trucknews.com
Traffic at the Port of Vancouver could be disrupted next week as truckers affected by the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority’s Rolling Truck Age Program contemplate job action as early as Aug. 1.
From Sept. 15, the port will ban container-hauling trucks with model years older than 2006, to improve air quality and community health. Read more here.

Demurrage and detention charges increased by 12% worldwide; have ‘become a significant cost centre for shippers’: Experts

ajot.com
Surplus containers are piling up at warehouses as demand wears out, resulting in rising demurrage and detention charges, contributing substantially to the operational costs for shippers. These were a few inferences that were discussed during a recent webinar hosted by Container xChange, world’s leading technology platform and infrastructure provider for container movement.   Read more here.

PMA and ILWU reach tentative agreement on health benefits, negotiations continue on other issues

splash247.com
The International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) have reached a tentative agreement on terms for health benefits, subject to agreement on the other issues in the negotiations. The parties have agreed not to discuss the terms of this tentative agreement as negotiations continue. Read more here.

Indian shippers face new cost hike with heavyweight container surcharges

theloadstar.com
Major container lines have revived the prospect of hefty surcharges on heavy containers shipped from India to the US and Canada, heaping further costs on the country’s exporters.
CMA CGM is the latest carrier to apply the additional levy, announcing a $1,000 per box penalty for all types of overweight shipments moving from the subcontinent to the US east, west and Gulf coasts, and Canada. Read more here.

GROUND AND RAIL FREIGHT UPDATES

Hong Kong faces more cross-border trucking restrictions

aircargonews.net
Supply chains operating through Hong Kong are once again facing restrictions on cross-border truck operations due to Covid-restrictions.
Freight forwarder Dimerco said that increasing Covid cases around Shenzhen have led to the city reducing daily cross-border truck movements from 3,500 to 1,500. Read more here.