Container production is waning in China, where empty containers collect in ports amid weakening exports. All these are indicators that China’s shipping industry is in a state of decline. Data shows that the global production of new containers in the first quarter of 2023 has fallen to the lowest since 2010. According to data released…

Container shipping rates continued to fall in October due to declining demand. The Shanghai (Export) Containerized Freight Index (SCFI) has fallen for 17 consecutive weeks. Shipping companies have started to discontinue services or cancel voyages. Athough container shipping prices dropped overall since the beginning of 2022, they began a continuous slide in July, and the…

The threat of a U.S. freight rail strike remains possible, as some rail unions have yet to ratify last week’s tentative deal reached by their leadership, with some local members already rejecting the terms. If just one of the unions decides to reject the brokered deal, the agreement would collapse and strikes may begin. The…

Global container freight rates have been falling since March, and the Freightos Baltic Index (FBX) has nearly halved in the past six months. The third quarter of each year is the traditional peak season for freight. However, this year, the freight industry has experienced a downshift due to global inflation, weakened economic outlooks, and shrunken…

Global container freight rates have been falling since March, and the Freightos Baltic Index (FBX) has nearly halved in the past six months. The third quarter of each year is the traditional peak season for freight. However, this year, the freight industry has experienced a downshift due to global inflation, weakened economic outlooks, and shrunken…

A recent report from the U.S. Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) showed that China’s control of global container manufacturing poses a threat to supply chains and economies worldwide. On March 30, FMC Commissioner Carl Bentzel released his assessment (pdf) of China’s control of container and intermodal chassis manufacturing after a year of research, market observation, and…

News Analysis A recent report from the U.S. Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) showed that China’s control of global container manufacturing poses a threat to supply chains and economies worldwide. On March 30, FMC Commissioner Carl Bentzel released his assessment (pdf) of China’s control of container and intermodal chassis manufacturing after a year of research, market…

AMSTERDAM—Freight volumes in the port of Rotterdam increased 15 percent on a yearly basis in the third quarter as international trade continued to recover from its COVID-19 slump, Europe’s largest sea port said on Tuesday. Trade flows to and from Rotterdam have been almost 9 percent higher in the first nine months of the year,…

Rail freight operators have stopped using electric trains and switched to diesel locomotives due to soaring energy prices. Firms cannot absorb the three-fold increase in the cost of electricity, according to trade body Rail Freight Group (RFG). The decision to mothball electric freight trains, which result in lower CO2 emissions than diesel models, was made…

Since August, the price of container freight from China to the United States has soared ten times, setting a record high. Due to the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus pandemic, containers shipped from China cannot return immediately after unloading at their destinations, causing congestion due to empty cargo rotation and limited shipping capacity. Global shipping…