Newsletter – May 7, 2020

  • 07

    May

    Newsletter – May 7, 2020
    AIR FREIGHT UPDATES
    Shanghai Pudong backlogs expected to continue over coming weeks
    aircargonews.net
    Backlogs of cargo of Shanghai Pudong airport are expected to continue until at least mid- to late-May as demand for personal protective equipment (PPE) continues to surge.
    The airport has been snarled up for weeks as a result of a surge in PPE demand, which is causing heavy congestion on feeder roads, parking lots, and cargo terminals. Read more here.
    Air Canada To Enforce Temperature Checks From All Passengers
    simpleflying.com
    Air Canada will become the first airline in the Americas to require passengers to undertake temperature checks. From May 15th, all passengers will have an infra-red test before they can board a flight. This comes as part of wider changes being introduced to keep passengers and crew safe, as all airlines look at ways to increase flying safely. Read more here.
    Air Canada Cargo: Temporary Relocation for Select International Import Shipments, Toronto
    ciffa.com
    Renovations beginning this week at its facility at Toronto Pearson International Airport have made it necessary for Air Canada Cargo to relocate some of the activities at its main building. Effective today, international import shipments of general cargo (AFR/PPR) and dangerous goods (ADG/PDG) must be retrieved at Air Canada Cargo’s second location, AC2. Find detailed information in this news release.
    Air cargo volume decline shows signs of ‘bottoming out’
    lloydsloadinglist.com
    While air cargo volumes diminished rapidly in March, new data for April offers some hope that the decline may be ‘bottoming out’ in parallel with a possible stabilisation of the global economy. Read more here.
    OCEAN FREIGHT UPDATES
    Hapag-Lloyd cutting costs while riding out pandemic
    freigthwaves.com
    Hapag-Lloyd CEO Rolf Habben Jansen said while the German container line is well positioned to weather the coronavirus pandemic, it is cutting costs this year by a “middle-three-digit million-dollar number.”
    In addition to blanking sailings, “we’re also restructuring services to mitigate costs and taking a whole variety of other measures as well. One of the ones that’s been the most public is, for example, trying to avoid the Suez Canal in some cases,” Jansen said during a press briefing Wednesday. Read more here.
    Container charter market goes ‘from boom to bust’ in four months
    theloadstar.com
    Ocean carriers are scrambling to cut costs as the demand for liner services continues to plummet, and the off-hiring of chartered tonnage is top of their agenda.
    Hapag-Lloyd chief executive Rolf Habben Jansen said yesterday that the carrier would return a further “small double-digit number” of ships from the 129 it has on time charters. Read more here.
    INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS – GOVERNMENT UPDATES
    Return to work guidelines issued by BIFA
    lloydsloadinglist.com
    With coronavirus lockdowns set to be loosened, freight companies should start planning for a return to work, according to the British International Freight Association (BIFA).
    BIFA said most of its members had seen business disrupted detrimentally by lockdowns. In detailed guidance notes (available for download here and also of use to non-UK freight companies), the organisation said members should prepare now for an anticipated easing of lockdown rules in the coming weeks to ensure they are ready to bounce back once economic activity resumes. Read more here.
    FIATA Guidance on the Addition of COVID-19-Specific Clauses in Bills of Lading
    ciffa.com
    In the context of the unprecedented COVID-19 crisis, companies may consider the insertion of additional clauses specifically focused on COVID-19 as an addendum to their bill of lading terms and conditions. Such clauses may include notification of potential delays or disruption in the carriage of cargo. Moreover, they may specify who bears the risk of additional costs including storage and demurrage.
    FIATA’s recent guidance on force majeure pointed to the potential applicability of certain force majeure clauses to the COVID-19 crisis, such as in the FIATA Bill of Lading. Each case is different, and the applicability of such clauses is very much dependent on the particular wording, circumstances, and whether causation is present. As such, carefully crafted addendums geared specifically towards COVID-19 may in some instances provide greater clarity, insofar as they are conspicuous, clear and consistent with other applicable terms and conventions.  Learn about factors to consider in this FIATA guidance.

    Comments are closed.