Key Shipping Indicators
November 1, 2011 by admin
The Cass Freight Index for US shipments reached its highest level in more than 3 years. JOC, Oct, 2011
US containerized imports rose 1% in September 2011, based on PIERS data.
Exports help expand GDP growth to 2.5% in third quarter. JOC, October 2011
US and Mexico Trucking Agreement Signed – and Spark Debate!
July 14, 2011 by admin
It appears that a years-long dispute over allowing commercial trucks from Mexico to use U.S. highways may be nearing an end. Or is there still an unresolved source of dispute?
The issue goes back to 1994 when NAFTA encouraged Mexican truckers to have free access to use American highways to deliver goods. Years later the Bush administration ran a pilot cross-border trucking program under provisions made in the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Then early in 2009, the Obama administration suspended the program, and sparked Mexico to set retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods for not allowing its trucks access to U.S. roadways. Currently, most Mexican-domiciled trucks are only allowed to operate within a 25-50 mile commercialized zone of the border.
The United States and Mexico signed a cross-border trucking agreement under which the U.S. will open its roads to Mexican trucks, and in return Mexico will suspend about $2 billion in tariffs on U.S. goods. This new agreement would end the trucking-related NAFTA disputes between the two countries. The two countries said they would issue their first trucking permits in August.
However, while the government and business leaders favor the trucking policy, the same is not true of the U.S. trucking industry and their unions. They claim that Mexican trucks will not meet the same safety standards as American trucks and would exacerbate our already staggering unemployment rate. Reaction to the agreement was swift, and negative, from the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA), which said in press release that independent truckers were “fuming” about the pact.
But the Department of Transportation (DOT) said the agreement would ensure safety, as Mexican trucks will be required to comply with U.S. safety standards and that they must have electronic monitoring systems to track hours-of-service compliance and that they would pay for the electronic onboard recorders (EOBRs). The decision to pay for these EOBRs with U.S. funds brought on even more criticism from many in the U.S. trucking industry.
Ricardo Alday, spokesman for the Mexican Embassy in Washington expressed hope that the agreement would be a successful bridge between the two nations, but said there will be more work in the future to preserve real trade.
U.S. is No Longer Mandating 100 % Screening of Cargo Containers
June 24, 2011 by admin
It was announced today that the United States is no longer going to screen every cargo container before it enters the United States.
On a visit to the Netherlands’ Rotterdam port, the fourth largest in the world, the DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano said, “We believe the so-called 100 percent requirement is probably not the best way to go.”
In 2007 Congress mandated that all containers entering the United States must be scanned at their ports of exit by 2012. Earlier this week, Napolitano met with her British counterpart Home Secretary, Theresa May, as well as with other EU ministers to explain the U.S. position on the security mandate.
The 2007 bill empowers DHS to extend the 2012 deadline if the agency believed that the goal was not achievable, which in the past Napolitano had expressed her doubts about the feasibility of the screening 100 percent of the cargo entering the United States.
Napolitano says rather than scanning all cargo containers, DHS prefers a “layered approach” that includes increased cooperation between countries and better intelligence sharing and analysis in addition to screening some containers.
She explained, “I think what we have learnt over time is that there are many different ways to achieve a security objective. You have to have multiple layers that operate effectively.”
Napolitano is currently abroad on week-long visit to Britain and other European nations to bolster support for global efforts to secure the supply chain.
So far about fifty ports around the world have signed on to the U.S.-led Container Security Initiative (CSI) which is aimed at preventing terrorist attacks and the smuggling of dangerous materials by mandating that port authorities pre-scan and evaluate containers.
Mexico Will Soon Institute the Mandatory Advanced Cargo Data Requirement
June 10, 2011 by admin
The Mexican government will soon begin testing of their new electronic requirements for advance cargo data for departing and arriving flights. Servicio de Administración Tributaria (SAT) which oversees the customs operations of Mexico is working with airlines and forwarders on a new system that will move toward electronic clearance of cargo.
Representatives for most all of the airlines serving Mexico have had meetings with SAT and are working with them currently on testing their systems with the Mexican government. Mandatory advance electronic data for import and export is expected to be required sometime during 2011.
To find out more about the SAT requirements and frequently asked questions go to the technical information bulletin section of their website at
http://www.aduanas.sat.gob.mx/aduana_mexico/2008/sala_prensa/158_18792.html
Attention all Importers!
April 29, 2011 by admin
There are 2 expected increases that will affect upcoming ocean import costs.
The first increase is the General Rate Increase (GRI) that will occur in May. The increase will affect the cost of goods coming to the United States from Asia. Depending on the carrier, the cost of a 20 foot container will raise to $300-400, and the cost of a 40 ft container will increase to around $600.
The second increase is the Peak Season Surcharge (PSS) which will go in to effect in June.
Unitrans Worldwide, Inc. Meets the New Air Freight 100% Security Screening Rule
August 17, 2010 by admin
The U.S. Congress mandated on August 1, 2010 that 100 percent of air freight shipped on passenger flights, both from and within, the United States will be screened Please be assured that Unitrans is ready to fulfill this requirement for your domestic transit and U.S. export shipments, and has been operating under similar screening requirements for some time. Our air freight screening fees are 15-25 cents per Kilo.
The new screening regulations will not impact our scheduled domestic air operations, so we can assure you of our ability to offer on-time delivery of your overnight and/or second day air shipments to major cities across the USA. Our transport solutions offer you the ability to tender your freight in a manner that best suits your business requirements.
Be assured, that Unitrans is ready and fully able to comply with the new screening rules, and in the process is able to provide the service integrity and consistency on which you depend and deserve.
Europe’s Version of the “10+2” Rule Poses Questions for Shippers
June 29, 2010 by admin
The European Union’s (EU) Import Control System (ICS) is mandating that shipment information as in the “10+2 Rule” be communicated to Customs in advance of a shipment. This process is shaking up import compliance in a scenario familiar to U.S. consignees. Similar to the “U.S. Importer Security Filing 10+2 Rule”, the ICS aims to deliver critical data to authorities before a shipment reaches the EU to better assess risks.
The EU regulation becomes effective Jan 1, 2011 and will place the burden of compliance on carriers. Importers and exporters will have to provide the timely and accurate information or face having their shipments to be delayed. Not surprisingly, shippers and transporters are voicing their concerns about how the information will be gathered, how the ICS will be financed, and how this effort will be launched across 27 European countries.
Shipping Could Face Greatest Short-term Spill Impact
June 8, 2010 by admin
The biggest short-term economic impact from the Gulf Coast oil spill could be a disruption of U.S. commerce through the Gulf shipping channel. Reports say a full shutdown of shipping lanes is unlikely, but significant delays could develop if cargo ships must have oil washed off their hulls before moving upriver.
This disruption could also have broader transportation flow effects by affecting the barge, container, and tanker traffic in the Mississippi Delta and on the Mississippi River. If traffic is affected for any extended period of time, then the prices of all types of commodities could rise.
Some of the ripple effects of disruptions in and out of the Port of New Orleans on freight networks could be the diversion of some cargoes, such as export grain, to other destinations.
For instance, it could push more Midwest farm shipments off barges and onto trains headed for West Coast ports, or onto ocean ships at Great Lakes ports that move into the Atlantic Ocean through the St. Lawrence Seaway.
Aside from possible effects on the supply chain, the spill can hurt the Gulf region’s fishing and tourism industries, depressing both direct and indirect incomes from that activity.
The impact on overall U.S. commerce was hoped to be small if responders could contain the spill quickly enough. However the impact on local industries was feared to be large. Fishing in the Gulf is already hurt from a 10-day ban. Gulf fishing generates annual dockside sales of $660 million, employs about 27,000 people in Louisiana alone and is second in size only to Alaska’s fishing industry. If the closure lasts long enough, it could raise fish and shrimp prices nationwide.
As it turns out, both local and national economics will be significantly affected.
Higher transportation costs of using alternative shipping lanes and ports could also price the loads out of the world market, delaying shipments until conditions improve. Authorities are anxious to keep the operational for Gulf shipping to maintain vital U.S. exports and imports. The Lower Mississippi River ports export over 50 million metric tones of corn, soybeans and wheat each year, which is more than 55 percent of all U.S. grains inspected for shipment.
CA Port Rules are Likely to Increase Container Drayage Costs and Create Capacity Crunch
May 7, 2010 by admin
Under the San Pedro Bay Clean Air Action Plan, two California ports (Los Angeles and Long Beach) adopted new rules that will have a significant affect on container drayage capacity and rates for containers moving through those ports. The costs may even triple with the new rules!
The new plan permits only concessionaires that are licensed by the ports and who are operating clean trucks to enter the terminals without having to pay a new truck impact gate fee. It further bans 2008, trucks older than 1988 from entering either port.
The Los Angeles rules go even further to ban the use of owner-operators at the port which may force more than 16,000 independent truckers to give up their trucks and become employees of the few larger trucking. It also imposes on the 1,300 drayage companies to only use employee drivers, which may force these small drayage carriers out of business.
Three agencies (the Transportation Intermediaries Association and the National Industrial Transportation League, and the American Trucking Association) have all filed opposition to the new rules. ATA is also challenging these new rules in federal court.
The new rules will cause a significant shortage of drayage capacity at these ports and a significant increase in rates while the remaining companies exercise their new-found market leverage.
Carrier Costs Increase as do Shipper Costs!
March 12, 2010 by admin
The poor economy has driven thousands of carriers out of business over the past 18 months. At the same time shipments nationwide declined. With the lack of demand for trucking, not many shippers noticed that lack of supply in available carriers.
Now that the economy is sputtering back to life with more of a demand for shipments, the lack of supply in carriers is suddenly noticeable by the shippers. This lack of supply is having two effects: slower transports and rapidly inflating prices.
In the past few weeks, the pricing power of the carriers has translated into prices rising as much as 30% in some instances. This is especially true in difficult transportation regions of the country (Northeast, Florida, Texas, etc). The market is changing very quickly right now, to where a quote this week might be much higher by next week!