Week 5 Freight and Customs Updates

The challenges for the ocean shipping industry continue, with rates and capacity the leading issues shippers are dealing with again this week.

In Customs news:

FDA Puts Alcohol-Based Hand Sanitizers from Mexico on Notice

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has placed all alcohol-based hand sanitizers from Mexico on a countrywide import alert to help stop products that appear to be in violation from entering the U.S. until the agency is able to review the products’ safety.

Check out the other top news impacting the international shipping industry this week:

An ‘aggressive’ fight over containers is causing shipping costs to rocket by 300%

Shipping costs have skyrocketed as desperate companies wait weeks for containers and pay premium rates to get them, according to industry watchers. The pandemic and uneven global economic recovery has led to this problem cropping up in Asia, although other parts of the world have also been hit.

US port delays force ‘structural’ blank sailings on Asian services

With Hapag-Lloyd — and by extension its partners in THE Alliance — advising customers of 21 de facto canceled sailings in February in the eastbound trans-Pacific due to schedule disruptions, importers should anticipate even tighter capacity in the coming months.

Importers face massive hike in ocean contract costs

Remember when people thought container shipping spot rates would peak around Chinese Golden Week last October? They weren’t even close. Then they thought year-end. Wrong again. Then they pointed to Chinese New Year, which starts next week.

Case accusing carriers, chassis pool operators of 'sweetheart deal' moves forward after judge denies stay

Federal Maritime Commission Chief Administrative Law Judge Erin M. Wirth denied a motion to stay the case proceedings filed by the Ocean Carrier Equipment Management Association and ocean carriers involved in the proceedings. The denial of the motion to stay means the case will continue to move forward.

A New Approach To Contract Freight: How Shippers Can Refocus Their Transportation Strategy In 2021

In 2020, we saw the transportation industry’s resilience first-hand, as all parties of the supply chain navigated a challenging freight landscape to get goods to market. Freight demand surged to meet the needs of consumers and frontline workers, and shippers were forced to rely heavily on the spot market to secure capacity in a pinch.

Warning to shippers that transpacific contract rates may be overheating

Transpacific shippers preparing to begin annual contract negotiations with container shipping lines have been warned that the market for contract rates could be around 15% overpriced.

Week 5 Freight and Customs Updates

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