Posts Tagged ‘freight carriers’
Friday, April 2nd, 2010
The Somali pirates had a win and a loss in their ongoing pillaging of the bank accounts of freight carriers in the region.
The loss came at the hands of the Danish Navy’s Absalom, who sunk a pirate “mothership” on Sunday. The Absalom had run off a pirate crew from a vessel they had started to seize last month as well, so our Danish friends had a good month, making them the unlikely baddest dudes in the Horn of Africa; you don’t usually associate the Danes as a naval powerhouse. The ship named after King David’s rebel son is going against type and getting out the Suezmax-sized can of whuppin’ on these modern-day rebels,
However, the pirates won a victory in court in Britain, where their High Court of Justice ruled that paying ransom to captors is not against public policy. In the absence of a naval task force right on top of a captive ship, ransom is often the safest avenue to save the lives of the captured crew. While paying ransom will encourage more piracy in the future, the court reasoned that not paying ransoms will likely result in dead crews, sunken ships and cargoes on the black market for the ships currently under pirate custody.
That puts the task force that the Absalom is currently heading up in a tough spot; the pirates have been given access to British cash if they grab a UK-owned vessel. It will make protecting container shipping going through the Suez Canal and on past Somalia a bit more difficult.
Sources: http://www.cargobusinessnews.com/news/wednesday/news5.html
http://seafarerblog.com/2010/02/27/payment…lic-policy.html
Tags: container shipping, freight, freight carriers, freight forwarders, freight moving, freight shipping, freight transport, heavy haul, moving freight, shipping freight, trucking companies, trucking services, Trucking transport
Posted in Auto Industry News, Freight Industry News, Momentum Freight, Momentum Freight News, Shipping News, freight shipping | No Comments »
Thursday, April 1st, 2010
The European rail freight carrier industry has had as tough a two year period as the worldwide freight carrier industry, but over in the United Kingdom Hams Hall just had its most important year in the history of the firm. In fact, their business just had the best year in the history of the company and they’re looking toward growing their business even more in 2010 and beyond. Hams Hall is operated by Associated British Ports (ABP), a firm that has apparently done pretty well compared to other rail freight carriers in Europe during the downturn in freight business.
During the last year Hams Hall has been adding new freight trains, with 15 new freight trains making the journey to destination every week. Hams Hall isn’t the only rail freight carrier that has been adding lines as Norfolk Line just began a bi-weekly service to Novara, using the Channel Tunnel and in September the first temperature-controlled rail freight train made the journey, something that hasn’t been seen for a few years.
This is a great sign for the European rail freight carrier industry, being able to grow business and infrastructure during times of financial instability and improve services for customers says a lot for the strength of the industry. There are even people who think that the adding of these freight lines removes a significant amount of carbon emissions from the air of Europe, but this of course has to be determined. The United Kingom appears committed to rail freight as the way they want to go with freight transport and with the moves the European freight industry has seen recently, they appear to be serious.
http://www.logisticsmanager.com/Articles/1…ight+boost.html
http://en.shippingchina.com/sailingnews/in…l/id/15656.html
http://www.ifw-net.com/freightpubs/ifw/ind…tid=20017753074
Tags: freight, freight carrier, freight carriers, freight forwarders, freight moving, freight shipping, freight transport, heavy haul, moving freight, shipping freight, trucking companies, trucking services, Trucking transport
Posted in Auto Industry News, Freight Industry News, Momentum Freight, Momentum Freight News, Shipping News, freight shipping | No Comments »
Tuesday, March 30th, 2010
After a terrible 2009 we’re finally into 2010 and with freight volumes going up slightly in the first part of 2010, along with freight rates, things are starting to look a little better for freight carriers using container shipping services from the United States to Asia.
This is great news for an industry that has had to deal with one problem after another, but it’s only a small improvement and we need to control our responses to the upturn in business. The improvement in the numbers could just be a temporary thing and we need to keep our responses to the improvement in the numbers well measured.
Just as we’re starting to get a little excited about the improvement in the freight carrier business news comes in that the Westbound Transpacific Stabilisation Agreement (WTSA) has decided that freight rates still need to be increased in order to help freight carriers deal with the problems they’re experiencing. The Transpacific Stabilisation Agreement members include APL, Cosco, Evergreen, Hanjin, Hapag-Lloyd, Hyundai Merchant Marine, K Line, NYK, OOCL and Yangming.
According to the WTSA freight carriers continue to head into the red as we head further into 2010, despite the increase in freight volumes and the present freight rates, and a further rate increase is necessary to help companies try to stay afloat.
This decision by the WTSA isn’t surprising since companies are continuing to loose money with the present rates that are being charged and a firm won’t be in business long if it keeps losing money. Companies need to make a profit and the price of freight services will have to be set at a level that allows firms to make a profit.
http://www.ifw-net.com/freightpubs/ifw/ind…tid=20017752615
Tags: freight, freight carrier, freight carriers, freight forwarders, freight moving, freight rates, freight shipping, freight transport, heavy haul, moving freight, shipping freight, trucking companies, trucking services, Trucking transport
Posted in Auto Industry News, Freight Industry News, Momentum Freight, Momentum Freight News, Shipping News, freight shipping | No Comments »
Tuesday, March 30th, 2010
The last twenty months has been chaos for a Canadian transport trucking industry that has had to deal with unstable freight rates for trucking transport, but there are reports by Canadian agencies tasked with watching over the freight industry in Canada think that things could be starting to return to normal and freight rates could start being a little more stable as we head further into 2010. The latest figures indicate according to some freight industry experts that the Canadian freight trucking industry has made it through the worst part of the recession. Hopes are that the recession is over and the improvement in the numbers isn’t just a temporary event and that we’ll get to win back some of the losses that we all have seen during the past twenty months of financial instability.
This is great news for the Canadian trucking industry and the freight industry as a whole if the experts are right and the recession is starting to lessen and we can expect the numbers to begin to get better. Stable prices for transporting truck freight is going to give customers and freight carriers more confidence that things are finally beginning to turn around in the freight industry and business around the world as a whole. This could mean firms are going to be willing to spend a little more to build business, which is going to make business even better.
If the price of trucking transport continues to be chaotic though, things are going to get even tougher for some firms in the Canadian trucking industry that are already close to the financial edge. The longer we spend in recession, the more trucking firms are going to head into the red on the accounting sheet and the more losses we are going to see.
http://www.ctl.ca/issues/story.aspx?aid=1000360715
Tags: freight, freight carriers, freight forwarders, freight moving, freight rates, freight shipping, freight transport, heavy haul, moving freight, shipping freight, Transport trucking, trucking companies, trucking services, Trucking transport
Posted in Auto Industry News, Freight Industry News, Momentum Freight, Momentum Freight News, Shipping News, freight shipping | No Comments »
Thursday, March 25th, 2010
The Baltic Dry Index is a commonly-used measure of bulk shipping rates; if the London Metals Exchange gets its wish, it will be trading BDI futures in the near future, giving freight carriers and their customers a more transparent way to hedge their shipping costs. However, the parent company of the BDI, the Baltic Exchange, has a profitable business arranging ad-hoc forward contracts between shipping firms and clients and is rather cool to the idea.
Forward contacts are a bit like futures in that they are locking in a price for a transaction in the future, except that they’re generally custom-made between parties (banks often offer foreign currency forward contracts to customers) and don’t have the transparency of an exchange-traded futures contract. Direct participants can use the Baltic Exchange’s forward contracts, but other parties that have a stake in freight rates might be interested in the LME’s futures contract.
For now, the Baltic Exchange is happy to be doing their freight forward contracts and making a nice profit being the middle-man for the deals; the proposed partnership with the LME has been turned down to date.
It may be up to the financial regulators in Britain and the EU to determine whether a shotgun marriage between the Baltic Exchange and the LME is needed; regulators are a bit spooked by ad-hoc “over the counter” derivatives and may look to make the market a bit easier to regulate. Current customers may lose out on the customized nature of forward rates, so their will be parties with vested interests on both sides of the issue.
Source: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405…ies_LEFTTopNews
Tags: freight, freight carriers, freight forwarders, freight moving, freight rates, freight shipping, freight transport, heavy haul, moving freight, shipping freight, trucking companies, trucking services, Trucking transport
Posted in Auto Industry News, Freight Industry News, Momentum Freight, Momentum Freight News, Shipping News, freight shipping | No Comments »
Thursday, March 25th, 2010
When I first heard of the Transpacific Stabilization Agreement, a group of 15 big container shipping companies who get together to talk about rate issues on shipping from Asia to North America, I thought that it should run afoul of anti-trust laws. However, the TSA has an anti-trust immunity to “meet and discuss issues relating to freight rates and surcharges.” Thus, these seaborne freight carriers can agree to impose “voluntary” surcharges and steer clear of the anti-trust authorities.
The Federal Maritime Commission has now expanded what the TSA can powwow about, including pollution and fuel consumption issues. The hot-button issue on the fuel front is slow-steaming, where ships go at about 18 knots rather than the normal 25, cutting fuel costs in half. Setting up these slow boats to (and from) China will require longer supply lines and increased transit times; it also will tend to lower freight rates, as customers will expect that some of that savings will be passed on to them.
Freight customers will need to budget more time to get goods to US markets; any changes in the speed of the supply chain will have a ripple effect on other freight carriers.
Domestic container trucks will be getting their goods a week or so later under slow steaming, so their schedules will have to be modified. There may well be a lull in the number of shipments as slow steaming starts to become the norm, as ships that would have been pulling into port in the old days are still out at sea.
Source: http://www.joc.com/maritime/fmc-clears-tra…alk-environment
Tags: container shipping, container trucks, freight, freight carriers, freight forwarders, freight moving, freight shipping, freight transport, heavy haul, moving freight, shipping freight, trucking companies, trucking services, Trucking transport
Posted in Auto Industry News, Freight Industry News, Momentum Freight, Momentum Freight News, Shipping News, freight shipping | No Comments »
Wednesday, March 24th, 2010
2010 will be a better year for the freight industry if the numbers keep looking better, but freight carriers should probably keep an eye out for any indicators of problems. The industry went through a through period in the last twenty months that has taught firms a lot about financial stability in a tough market. Freight carriers need to keep the things we learned during this period in the front of our minds to help keep the industry headed down the path to continued growth.
The air freight carrier industry appears to be the industry that could come out of the recession the strongest, at least at first, but things can change quickly. The air freight industry could be in a better position than trucking transport and rail freight movements as we head down the path to recovery. Customers that use air freight services have different requirements than companies that move by truck and rail and the present situation in the freight industry for many firms could see them making use of air freight movements in order to move freight. Particularly firms that are moving to a just-in-time production principle for their goods will make more use of the speed, security and reliability of air freight movements. In addition, many firms trying to cut costs could start looking at buying materials and goods from sources closer to their production facilities in Europe and North America, and thus eliminate the cost of importing from Asia.
The savings in costs that this strategy could mean will definitely be very attractive to many firms that are in a cost-cutting phase. In many instances the cost of local production is going to outweighted the investment in infrastructure and employment resources required for the logistics of moving the freight from Asia.
Firms going through a cost-cutting phase are certainly going to look at anything they figure could help their bottom line and this strategy could help some firms.
The air freight industry appears to be able to change quicker in responses to stimulus of various types and this sector of the freight industry is picking up speed quickly. Hopefully, this sector can help lead the charge of the freight industry as a whole as we head further into 2010, and the recovery we have all been waiting for.
http://www.ifw-net.com/freightpubs/ifw/ind…tid=20017750414
Tags: freight, freight carrier, freight carriers, freight forwarders, freight moving, freight shipping, freight transport, heavy haul, moving freight, shipping freight, trucking companies, trucking services, Trucking transport
Posted in Auto Industry News, Freight Industry News, Momentum Freight, Momentum Freight News, Shipping News, freight shipping | No Comments »
Friday, March 12th, 2010
The European economy may be heading into a double-dip recession, something that should scare freight fowarders and anyone else in the shipping industry. The fourth quarter 2009 figures had the Eurozone (the countries using the Euro) growing at an anemic 0.1% rate. If the Greek economic problems continue (which they have in the first half of the first quarter) to bring downward pressure on the Eurozone, the European economies may have a second recession on their hands this year, or at least a negative growth first quarter of 2010.
That has repercussions across the pond. Container transport, which is the preferred mode of transport for exports, will likely be stagnant if there is a decreased demand for US goods in Europe; that is going to throw a monkey wrench into the President’s plan to double exports in five years. Fewer stuff will be flowing into the ports on the east coast and freight carriers in the east will have less business.
In a recessionary environment, the Euro will weaken, especially if the Greek debt situation casts doubt on the long-term stability of the Euro, which will make European exports more competitive. That will be good news for European car makers and US makers with European connections, but bad news for US car haulers.
This might encourage the US to be more Pacific-focused, as a growing Asia and a stagnant Europe will tend to skew the US economy towards more of a Pacific focus. The ports of the West Coast may become even more important in the years to come.
Source:http://www.marketwatch.com/story/german-gd…dist=beforebell
Tags: container transport, freight, freight carrier, freight carriers, freight forwarders, freight moving, freight shipping, freight transport, heavy haul, moving freight, shipping freight, trucking companies, trucking services, Trucking transport
Posted in Auto Industry News, Freight Industry News, Momentum Freight, Momentum Freight News, Shipping News, freight shipping | No Comments »
Thursday, March 11th, 2010
The second big storm to hit the east coast in a week is still slowing down freight carriers; Delaware still is under a state of emergency that precludes most trucks from traveling in the state, including I-95. Package delivery services suspended service to some affected areas, including Maryland and the District of Columbia and many trucking firms with hubs in the mid-Atlantic had to shut down operations.
However, another storm is brewing in Europe, one that is man-made; customs workers in Greece are slated for a three-day strike next week, protesting budget cuts by the Greek government. That will cut off any seagoing traffic going into the country and cut off interstate transport coming from Turkey and the rest of the Middle East from its main land route with the EU.
The Greek government has run a massive deficit and has implemented an austerity plan to close the deficit, which includes a pay freeze for government workers, including the striking customs workers as well as only replacing 20% of retiring workers. The large deficit has put downward pressure on the Euro, as Greece has the Euro as its currency; the rest of the EU is debating whether to do anything about the Greek government’s deteriorating financial position.
Without any outside help, budget cuts are the government’s best solution, but one that angers the unions that helped put the current government into office. That will mean trucking logistics will be made very problematic in the weeks to come as militant public-sector unions protest having to bear the brunt of the country’s budget woes.
Sources: http://www.capegazette.com/storiescurrent/…/updates12.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/8508688.stm
http://www.handyshippingguide.com/shipping…-next-week_1283
http://www.breakbulk.com/content/?p=1219
Tags: freight, freight carriers, freight forwarders, freight moving, freight shipping, freight transport, heavy haul, interstate transport, moving freight, shipping freight, trucking companies, trucking logistics, trucking services, Trucking transport
Posted in Auto Industry News, Freight Industry News, Momentum Freight, Momentum Freight News, Shipping News, freight shipping | No Comments »
Tuesday, March 9th, 2010
Survival of the fittest is definitely the rule of business in the freight carrier industry of late and Europe has had just as tough a time dealing with the problems in the industry as the rest of the world. The moves and hard choices that have had to be made by many firms has kept them in business while firms in financial situations that aren’t as strong have fallen by the roadside. The ocean freight industry has started slow-steaming and put freight capacity away in order to reduce costs and keep the ships traveling back and forth with freight. The container trucking industry has begun looking at the newest technologies to help reduce costs and deal with the problem of reducing their carbon footprint on the surface of the Earth.
European freight carriers LD Lines and Transeuropa Ferries have decided to combine business resources in an effort to improve the services each firm supplies to customers in the geographical regions of Europe in which they both do business. The current agreement is for the firms to share space on ferries moving back and forth along the channel run between Ramsgate and Ostend next month. This means that freight capacity on the run will be increased sometime in the second half of 2010. They haven’t provided a firm date for the start of the service, but this will improve freight movements on this run and provide customers using the run with the more space for moving freight.
The freight industry could see more similar agreements between firms looking to take advantage of freight capacity that isn’t being used. Firms can improve their services by using the ability of another firm with overlapping freight services and services that one firm or the other doesn’t have as much capacity for. This kind of agreement is good for the industry as it makes use of the present capacity we have, rather than building additional capacity that is expensive and might not be used to its full. This will definitely reduce overall costs for firms that can use this strategy and should make the freight industry healthier as a whole.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/kent/8504588.stm
http://www.ifw-net.com/freightpubs/ifw/ind…tid=20017746639
http://info.jctrans.com/jcnet/news/osn/2010210850387.shtml
Tags: container trucking, freight, freight carrier, freight carriers, freight forwarders, freight moving, freight shipping, freight transport, heavy haul, moving freight, shipping freight, trucking companies, trucking services, Trucking transport
Posted in Auto Industry News, Freight Industry News, Momentum Freight, Momentum Freight News, Shipping News, freight shipping | No Comments »