News & Insights

With the deadline fast approaching for export declarations moving to the Customs Declaration Service HMRC are highlighting a worrying trend at the border, with misuse of valid documents leaving innocent exporters potentially non-compliant and exposed to penalties.  In their latest Customs... Read more

With sea freight rates so low, below cost on many important trade lanes the container shipping lines are looking to surcharges and all manner of ancillary charges to boost their cash flows. Macro-economics continue to work against the shipping lines, with global demand suppressed and costs ris... Read more

The United States of America is the UK's largest single trading partner, with the value of goods and services nearly five times the value of trade with Germany, the UK's second largest export market and hopes are growing of a breakthrough in US/UK trade negotiations. Total US goods imported to... Read more

The EU’s Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) extends to container shipping from the 1st January 2024, with significant legal, commercial and financial consequences for carriers and a new surcharges for shippers. Under the EU ETS carriers will purchase a capped number of permits, known as ... Read more

With 2024 just weeks away, scheduled container shipping capacity post-Golden Week on both the trans-Pacific and Asia to North Europe trade-lanes is up massively. Over 30% to the USEC and over 10% to Europe, raising fears of a massive blank sailing program between now and the end of the year. J... Read more

Crohn's disease and colitis are inflammatory bowel diseases, with a wide variety of symptoms, which cause pain, inflammation, tiredness and weight-loss, and one Metro team member decided to do something about it. Crohn’s & Colitis is a life-long condition which is often diagnosed in youn... Read more

Airfreight spot rates continued to rise last week as weather conditions, volcanic activity and wars put capacity under pressure, with fears of a major eruption in Iceland growing - possibly within days. With the airfreight sector preparing to benefit from a potential reduction in ocean shippin... Read more

Following the driest year and October on record, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) has been steadily cutting daily vessel transit numbers and draught levels across the canal, with some restrictions possibly staying in force until 2028, with wider supply chain ramifications. With each transit of... Read more

In partnership with key technology partners WNS and Windward, Metro has won the Innovation Category at this month’s Supply Chain Excellence and ISG Paragon Awards, for two AI powered solutions. It is through award-winning initiatives such as these, that we maintain our strong track record in... Read more

As part of the UK’s net zero commitment the government is supporting a variety of technology, fuel and market-based measures to address aviation emissions, with particular commitment to sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). The government recognise sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) as crucial to ef... Read more

Air freight spot rates have risen steadily since August on major Asia outbound lanes and while there is no significant peak season the market is definitely tighter, with global rates and tonnages stabilising after China’s Golden Week. There is a perceptible uptick in air cargo rates, which i... Read more

In an attempt to recover operations back into the black and jettison unprofitable cargoes, the container shipping lines have deferred FAK freight rate increases from Asia until December, after their planned November GRIs failed. The Asia-North Europe rate increases, that were due to be valid f... Read more