Maritime
October 1: East and Gulf Coast Ports Strike, with ILA Longshoremen Walking Off Job from New England to Texas, Stranding Billions in Trade – CNBC
Approximately 50,000 ILA union longshoremen walked off the job at East Coast and Gulf Coast ports from New England to Texas starting at 12:01 am ET on October 1 after failing to reach an agreement with ports ownership on a new contract, the union’s first strike since 1977.
Between 43% and 49% of all U.S. imports and billions of dollars in trade monthly move through the U.S. East Coast and Gulf ports.
October 2: Box Lines Declare Force Majeure as White House Defends ILA – The Loadstar
Shipping lines are beginning to declare force majeure, as the U.S. East and Gulf Coast port strike continues.
Any hope from employer association USMX that the government might intervene to halt the economically damaging strike was dashed when the White House landed firmly on the side of the union. The administration also warned carriers against ‘price-gouging.’
A statement from President Biden urged both sides to restart collective bargaining, saying “the best way for workers to get the pay and benefits they deserve.”
He added: “I have urged USMX, which represents a group of foreign-owned carriers, to come to the table and present a fair offer to the workers of the International Longshoremen’s Association that ensures they are paid appropriately in line with their invaluable contributions.
“Ocean carriers have made record profits since the pandemic and, in some cases, in excess of 800% compared with their profits prior to the pandemic. Executive compensation has grown in line with those profits and profits have been returned to shareholders at record rates.
“It’s only fair that workers, who put themselves at risk during the pandemic to keep ports open, see a meaningful increase in their wages as well.”
October 3: U.S. Port Strike Ends as Workers Agree to Tentative Deal on Wages and Contract Extension – CNBC
The ILA and USMX agreed on October 3 to a tentative deal on wages and have extended their existing contract through January 15 to provide time to negotiate a new contract.
The move ends a strike that had snarled East Coast and Gulf Coast ports since the beginning of the week.
“The International Longshoremen’s Association and the United States Maritime Alliance, Ltd. have reached a tentative agreement on wages and have agreed to extend the Master Contract until January 15, 2025, to return to the bargaining table to negotiate all other outstanding issues,” the parties said in a joint statement.
October 15: Carriers Battle for Market Share as Demand Falls and Alliance Shuffle Looms – The Loadstar
The shuffling of container shipping alliances in 2025 is prompting liner operators to fight for market share, impeding capacity discipline, despite a relentless fall in freight rates.
Linerlytica’s report this week notes that just 37 box ships, amounting to 77,185 TEU, equivalent to 0.3% of the active fleet, are currently unemployed.
The consultancy noted: “Demand for additional tonnage shows no signs of cooling down, with carriers snapping up all tonnage coming open on the charter market in the next two months. The idle fleet remains unusually low at this time of the year, while scrap sales for the year remain well short of 100,000 TEU as carriers set the stage for a fresh battle for market share ahead of the 2025 alliance reshuffle.”
October 21: More Cargo Chaos at Chittagong Port as Transport Operators Strike for 48 Hours – The Loadstar
Shippers are facing more upheaval at Chittagong Port – transport operators began a 48-hour strike on the morning of October 21, leaving export and import containers stranded.
The Chittagong District Prime Move Trailer Workers Union’s action will impact 3,000 to 4,000 TEU at the port each day of the strike.
Secretary general of the Bangladesh Inland Container Depots Association Ruhul Amin Sikder said: “If the strike continues, shipment of boxes would not be possible in time. Many containers will miss designated feeder and mother vessels.”
Air
October 2: Airlines Scramble to Avoid Middle East Airspace as Missiles Fly – The Loadstar
Israeli, Jordanian and Iraqi airspace is temporarily closed after Iran’s biggest-ever missile attack on Israel, with disruption to air cargo traffic expected.
Israeli officials reported that Iran launched some 200 ballistic missiles at the country on October 1, following days of attacks on Hezbollah targets in Beirut, Lebanon.
October 10: Soaring Airfreight Rates See Dhaka Cargo Being Moved via China – The Loadstar
Bangladeshi freight forwarders have started sending air cargo to the U.S. west coast via China, as elevated airfreight rates elsewhere mean this is more cost-effective than using Middle East hubs.
As well as soaring rates out of Dhaka, forwarders have reported hubs in the Middle East as congested in recent weeks, particularly as regional tensions increase and airlines were forced to cancel flights.
October 11: Air Cargo Spot Rates Hit 2024 Peak, While Vietnam Becomes a Hotspot – The Loadstar
As of October 11, air cargo spot rates had risen to their highest level this year, despite the recent Golden Week holiday in China.
Tonnages fell by 7% week on week out of Asia Pacific, in the week to October 6, WorldACD said. But worldwide spot rates went up 1% in the week to $2.84 per kg – their highest level this year.
Asia Pacific rates rose 1%, while Africa was up 2% and Central and South America up 5%. WorldACD noted that contract rates out of Asia Pacific rose 2%.
One current hotspot is Vietnam – and it has not gone unnoticed by carriers.
October 17: Incendiary Device Revealed to Have Been Found in UK Parcel Network in July – Air Cargo News
It has been revealed that a shipment containing an incendiary device found its way into DHL’s UK parcel network and caught fire in July, with the incident under investigation by the country’s counter-terrorism police.
The Guardian reported that the device had been transported by aircraft into the UK and later caught fire at a DHL warehouse in Birmingham.
The incident occurred in July but only came to light on October 17 following an investigation published by the news services.
At this stage, it is not known whether the package was transported on a freighter or a passenger aircraft, or what its final destination would have been.
A similar incident occurred in Germany earlier this year with the package igniting in Leipzig.
The head of Germany’s domestic intelligence service, Thomas Haldenwang, said the shipment had been delayed and would otherwise have been on an aircraft when it caught fire and would have resulted in a crash.
Rail
October 2: CPKC Integration Update
CPKC has scheduled the integration of its Canadian/U.S. systems for Q2 2025. Complete integration with Mexico is planned for a later date.
Significant progress on this has already been made by CPKC, including active collaboration with Railinc and Interline partners to ensure a successful transition. Customer training, support and ongoing communication regarding critical system or process changes will be provided well in advance.
Trucking
October 2: U.S. FMCSA Targets Falsified ELD Records in New Approach – Transport Topics
Faced with evolving tactics to bypass hours-of-service rules, the U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is taking steps to combat electronic logging device fraud. The agency is launching a multipronged approach to address what it describes as a “moving target.”
In particular, the agency cited National Transportation Safety Board concerns with so-called ghost drivers as well as drivers utilizing multiple ELD accounts, and it is exploring various technological requirements to target those specific issues. It also is monitoring ELD performance data, training enforcement personnel to identify and act against fraud, removing noncompliant ELD providers from the market, and updating its ELD rules.
October 4: Cargo Theft Trends: Motor Carrier Number Manipulation Is on the Rise in the U.S. – FleetOwner
Imagine you’re a freight broker who has done business with the same trucking company in the U.S. for many years. The fleet has a good reputation, and you know them personally. Unbeknownst to you, those in charge of the trucking company sell its motor carrier number; unbeknownst to the fleet, those who purchase the number are cargo thieves.
With this MC number, the cargo thieves come to you, the freight broker, for a load. The cargo thieves paid extra to the original fleet for its phone number, email and other contact information. So, on your end, nothing has changed; the fleet information looks the same in your system. You have no idea that your once-trusted carrier sold its MC number. You give them a load, and the thieves steal it and others in one fell swoop, abandoning the MC number afterward.
This Trojan Horse method is called motor carrier number manipulation, and according to cargo theft experts, it’s currently on the rise.
October 10: FMCSA Guidance on Buying and Selling MC Numbers – Overdrive
Is it legal to sell an MC number? Trucking businesses obviously get bought and sold all the time.
But then there’s a grey, or maybe even black, market for MC numbers to help fraudsters evade detection from carrier vetting software or even the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration itself. Some shady operations offer trucking companies up to $30,000 for an MC number with a good history and relationships with big shippers.
Since 2013, FMCSA does not process “applications for transfer of operating authority, issue transfer approvals, or require the $300 fee formerly associated with such applications,” a notice in the Federal Register reads. “Under the new transfer recordation process, both transferors and transferees will be asked to provide basic identifying information concerning their business operations, ownership, and control, e.g., name, business form, business address, and name(s) of owner(s) and officers. No application form is required, and no transfer fee applies.”
Basically, these days, when two willing parties want to transfer an MC, they’re asked, not required, to tell FMCSA about it, and there isn’t even an application.
October 18: Q3 Cargo Theft Incidents 14% Higher Than Last Year – Today’s Trucking
Cargo thefts across the U.S. and Canada saw a sharp rise in the third quarter of 2024, with 776 theft events reported, representing a 14% increase compared with the same period in 2023, according to a new report from CargoNet. The total value of stolen goods in the third quarter of the year exceeded $39 million.
Despite a slight 1.6% decrease in incidents compared with the second quarter of 2024, the gap is expected to close as delayed reports come in, CargoNet said. The report added that organized crime groups continue to drive the increase in cargo theft, turning to increasingly sophisticated tactics of strategic nature that typically involve some form of document fraud, identity theft and intent to steal the property they are being entrusted to transport.
