Newsletter – March 26, 2021

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    Newsletter – March 26, 2021
    AIR FREIGHT UPDATES
    Seaplane Hong Kong Wants To Ferry Passengers In Drones For $25

    simplefyling.com
    Zipping around Hong Kong in a drone might seem far-fetched, but would-be startup airline Seaplane Hong Kong is eyeing that possibility. With short travel times and low fares, Seaplane Hong Kong thinks its plans for urban air mobility vehicles, or drones, could be just the thing to beat Hong Kong’s congested street traffic. Read more here.

    OCEAN FREIGHT UPDATES
    Eureka, another container ship en route to Long Beach, delayed

    freightwaves.com
    Nike and other major U.S. importers just got another kick in the shins. The arrival of the Maersk Eureka at the Port of Long Beach, California, will be delayed by about three weeks because of a mechanical problem at sea.
    The notice of the latest delay came from MSC Mediterranean Shipping Co., which told customers Thursday, “Maersk has informed us that the container ship Maersk Eureka, deployed on our Sequoia service, had to stop at sea due to a damaged fuel pump.”  Read more here.

    Shipping makes alternate Suez plans with removal of Evergreen boxship not a given

    splash247.com
    The 21st century version of the Suez crisis has now seen vessels diverting, heading around the Cape of Good Hope as shipping comes to grips with the full ramifications of a blocked key chokepoint in global trade.
    Efforts to dislodge the 20,388 teu Ever Given, which is currently straddling Asia and Africa with its bow lodged in the eastern bank of the canal, have thus far failed. Tugs tried to move the ship in the first 24 hours after it careened across the waterway. A digger has been trying to free the bow of the ship, while three dredgers have arrived and are working on the port side of the giant 399 m long Evergreen-operated vessel. Read more here.

    It ‘Might Take Weeks’ To Free Ship Stuck In Suez Canal, Salvage Company Says

    npr.org
    The Suez Canal Authority said in a statement Thursday that it had officially suspended traffic while efforts to dislodge the 1,300-foot Ever Given, stuck crossways in the canal, continued, raising the possibility of major new disruptions to global commerce just as supply chains have begun to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. Read more here.

    Strong second half gives Yang Ming newfound financial confidence

    theloadstar.com
    Like its industry peers, Yang Ming saw profits soar in the final quarter of last year, recording a surplus of $343m, pushing full-year net profit to $405m.
    Despite a 6.6% decline in liftings, to 5.1m teu, the Taiwanese carrier’s turnover improved 1.4% year on year, to $5.11bn, as freight rates leapt in the second half of the year while fuel costs remained low.
    Yang Ming achieved its first profitable quarter in over two years in Q3, after having racked up losses of …read more here (login required).

    Congestion hits Auckland, posing a ‘multi-million dollar’ problem for shippers

    theloadstar.com
    Delays at the New Zealand port of Auckland have become a “multi-million dollar problem” for the nation’s shippers.
    Rocketing demand for containers, staff shortages and a half-finished automation programme have combined to create a “perfect storm” of delays, exporters say. Read more here (login required).

    CANADA BUSINESS – GOVERNMENT UPDATES
    Ransomware attack on EDI provider highlights cyber risks in supply chain

    freightwaves.com
    A ransomware attack has targeted an electronic data interchange (EDI) provider that works with some of the largest shippers in North America and IBM’s supply chain network. The incident highlights the potential vulnerabilities of the most widely used type of technology that businesses use to communicate information about freight.
    The CEO and owner of Canada-based Faxinating Solutions, Steve Hatajlo, disclosed the attack to FreightWaves after the Conti ransomware gang posted 15 files to a leak site last week. Hatajlo said company personnel detected the attack on March 3, and there has been no indication that the hackers breached any systems involving EDI operations. Read more here.

    Pride Group buying 100 trucks from Lion Electric

    insidelogistics.ca
    Pride Group Enterprises (Pride) is buying 100 all-electric Lion6 and Lion8 trucks from Lion Electric. The order represents Lion’s largest single order of zero-emission trucks to date. Read more here.

    INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS – GOVERNMENT UPDATES
    Buttigieg vows to help US exporters resolve supply chain woes

    freightwaves.com
    U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg pledged to step into the fray to help resolve a dispute between vessel operators and U.S. exporters over container pricing and availability.
    Testifying before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee on Thursday on the Biden administration’s infrastructure priorities, Buttigieg was asked by lawmakers what he could do to expedite a solution to the congestion that has been going on for months — particularly at West Coast ports — and that exporters say is costing millions of dollars in spoiled cargo. Read more here.

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