Newsletter – November 3, 2021

AIR FREIGHT UPDATES

Air Canada Un-Cancels A220s And Speeds Up 737 MAX Deliveries
simpleflying.com
Strong revenue flows and improving passenger traffic trends are creating some much-needed lift for Air Canada. On the back of this improved performance, the airline has reversed a decision to cancel part of an A220 order and is taking 737 MAXs earlier than previously forecast. Read more here.

Supply chain issues continue to drive air cargo demand
aircargonews.net
Air cargo demand continued to increase in September as ongoing supply chain issues pushed companies to utilise airfreight.
The latest figures from airline association IATA show that demand in cargo tonne km terms (CTK) increased by 9.1% in September compared with the same month in 2019. Read more here.

Air Canada’s cargo revenues exceed C$1bn mark for the year
aircargonews.net
Air Canada Cargo reported record figures in the third quarter of the year as the airline continues its push into the air cargo market.
The carrier reported cargo revenues for the third-quarter period of C$366m, an increase of 69.4% compared with a year earlier. Read more here.

OCEAN FREIGHT UPDATES

CMA CGM splashes $2.3bn to take back its former LA container terminal
splash247.com
CMA CGM has agreed to take over the Fenix Marine Services (FMS) terminal in Los Angeles, in a deal with an enterprise value of $2.3bn. The French containerline, which currently holds a 10% stake in the terminal, is buying back the remaining 90% from EQT Infrastructure III fund after selling it in 2017 for $875m.
FMS is the third-largest terminal in the Los Angeles/Long Beach port area in terms of capacity and one of the largest in North America. The terminal operates on a concession from the Port of Los Angeles expiring in 2043. Read more here.

GCT Deltaport Berth 4 Expansion Project to Proceed to Next Phase of Environmental Assessment
globalterminals.com
VANCOUVER, BC – On October 28, 2021, GCT’s Deltaport Expansion – Berth Four Project (DP4) reached another milestone in the coordinated impact assessment process. The Detailed Project Description was accepted, and the Readiness Decision Report along with the Readiness Decision Order was issued recommending that the Project proceed to the next phase of an Environmental Assessment. Read more here.

Challenges rising – unlike water levels – for shippers using Europe’s barges
theloadstar.com
Shippers using Europe’s inland waterways are facing “phenomenal” surcharges and the prospect of cargo going undelivered, as barge operators contend with low water levels.
On Friday, Contargo announced €175 ($203) and €225 ($261) surcharges for 20ft and 40ft containers, respectively, if water levels dip below 80cm, as has been forecast, claiming its costs would increase as a result. Read more here (login required)

Box shipping welcomes a new vessel class
splash247.com
A new standard boxship type has emerged from nowhere in 2021. Alphaliner, in its latest weekly report, details the sudden growth of the compact 7,000 teu ship. After years of barely any orders of mid-sized container tonnage, 2021 has seen orders flood in, coalescing around the 7,000 teu size, a new workhorse design for the industry.
Alphaliner tallies 58 orders for 7,000 teu class ships so far this year, tonnage that will deliver from early 2023 through to early 2025. Read more here.

GROUND AND RAIL FREIGHT UPDATES

Truckers tired of taking blame for congestion crisis at California ports
freightwaves.com
As Miguel Silva surveyed his truck yard just outside the Port of Oakland last week, he pointed to shipping containers filled with corn and soybean seed bound for impoverished nations in Africa and elsewhere around the globe.
Silva said his customers’ genetically modified seed, which can’t be reused because it’s engineered in a lab, should have been loaded on a cargo ship weeks ago to arrive in time for the planting season. Read more here.

CANADA BUSINESS – GOVERNMENT UPDATES

Canadian factory activity posts 7-month high despite supply disruptions
reuters.com
TORONTO, Nov 1 (Reuters) – Canadian manufacturing activity grew in October at the fastest pace in seven months as a pickup in new orders and hiring offset mounting supply chain pressures, data showed on Monday.
The IHS Markit Canada Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) rose to a seasonally adjusted 57.7 in October from 57.0 in September, its highest reading since March when it notched a record-setting level of 58.5. Read more here.