New US demurrage and detention regulations in force
The Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) final rule on demurrage and detention billing requirements came into force on the 28th May, except for two provisions that are delayed.
The rule applies to ocean common carriers trading to or from the US, including vessel-operating common carriers (VOCCs) ...
Read more
Summer 2024; France supply chain alert
This summer, a number of large-scale sporting events are likely to create some supply chain disruption, with the Olympic and Paralympic Games taking place in Paris between the 26th of July to the 11th of August, and the 28th of August to the 8th of September.
The Paris 2024 Olympic Games, whic...
Read more
Airfreight market continues to fly – for now
The surge in Asia to Europe ocean freight (see ‘Ex-Asia spot rate spiral turned into shooting star’) is also boosting demand for airfreight to Europe and even to North and South America.
Uncertainty and delays with ocean shipments have been encouraging more shippers to transfer to airfreig...
Read more
Importers concerned at cost of Brexit trade checks
Delayed five times by the UK government, post-Brexit physical border checks of animal products, plants and plant products through the Port of Dover and Eurotunnel were finally implemented on the 30th April 2024. However, importers of affected products express concern about additional costs.
Th...
Read more
Red Sea Crisis insurance withdrawals – fact or fiction?
In addition to fast-rising ocean freight rates and extended transit times, as the container shipping lines divert around Africa, shippers have been struggling to understand what (if any) insurance is in place, with insurance companies massively increasing war risk premiums and no longer willing t...
Read more
General Red Sea Update
The US and UK carried out eight strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen on Monday, as the Iran-aligned armed group continues to target commercial shipping in the Red Sea, with no sign that the conflict will de-escalate anytime soon.
While many hoped that the situation in the Red Sea might be a shor...
Read more
Economic impact of Suez Canal diversions
For the UK and Europe fears are growing that any prolonged denial of access to the Suez Canal could impact faltering economies and derail plans to start cutting interest rates later this year.
Despite the confidence of European and UK central banks, uncertainties about the Red Sea crisis' impa...
Read more
Red Sea Crisis; Situation Report, Wednesday 17th Jan
Despite coalition military action, Houthi rebels continue to attack commercial shipping and with container shipping line’ schedules showing Cape of Good Hope routing for vessels into early February and beyond, it is clear that they do not expect short-term access through the Suez Canal and Red ...
Read more
The real impact of diverting ships round Africa
Following the sharp escalation of attacks on container ships in the Bab-al-Mandeb strait off the coast of Yemen last week, major container shipping lines are diverting vessels around the southern tip of Africa, rendering the Suez routing unavailable for an unknown period.
With the Suez route c...
Read more
Sea freight shippers opt for air and sea/air alternatives
With the container shipping lines diverting around Africa until the Red Sea maritime security situation improves, the uncertainty and unpredictability that surrounds schedules could fuel demand for air cargo as shippers seek stability of services and certainty of transit times.
Air cargo deman...
Read more
Metro’s new LCL guru
With over 20 years' experience in freight and logistics, the majority of which has been in the ocean freight environment and specifically the LCL product, in the UK and overseas, we are pleased to introduce our new Senior LCL Commercial Manager, Jane Kenny, who is leading this critical service ar...
Read more
Retailers warn of delays after Red Sea attacks
Leading retailers including IKEA and NEXT have warned that the diverting of vessels aways from the Suez canal and around southern Africa will result in delays and may restrict the availability of certain products.
Re-routing container ships around Africa adds 3,500 nautical miles to a typical ...
Read more