ports

Contingency Plan In Case of a Strike

The International Longshore & Warehouse Union (ILWU), which has always played a major role in container shipping at 29 US West Coast ports, could make a big impact in 2014, but the impact might be difficult to grasp. The rumor is that the International Longshore & Warehouse Union might be ceasing labor negotiations with the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) on June 30th. This is the date that the International Longshore & Warehouse Union contract is set to expire. About 20,000 workers are covered by the contract.

Water Resources Reform and Development Act

Finally, the politicians in Washington managed to cease their pointless arguing (for the time being) to work together on an important bill for the American people. And that bill will directly help the US container shipping industry.

Trade Sanctions & Imports from Russia

Recently in the news, the United States issued more sanctions against Russia. These sanctions are a direct result of the recent incident with Ukraine and Crimea. Usually in these types of situations, sanctions could diminish trade activity between two nations. Carriers and freight forwarders worldwide want to avoid harsh trade situations. There is good news however.

Merging the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles?

To say that the Port of Long Beach and the Port of Los Angeles have a little rivalry with each other would be a bit of an understatement. There has been, and in many ways still, a heated rival that existed between both mega ports. Over the years, both ports have taken away container shipping clients from each other and disagreed on numerous projects.

Dredging Ports for Large Ships

Dredging services have always played an important role in the development of our ports in the US. And in many ways, the container shipping industry would be immensely different if not for the help that dredging has played. Essentially, the dredging process involves the movement of sediments that are in or near the water and the ports. The goal of the dredging project involves making more space for the ocean vessels to navigate and be at the dock. Without dredging, there might be a lack of space at the port.

Containers vs.Breakbulk

In international ocean freight shipping, there are two options for transportating cargo: containers or breakbulk. The difference between both options is simply that break bulk refers to individual or loose materials that are loaded, shipped and unloaded from the ship, and containers refers to a storage unit where all of the materials stay. 20 foot or 40 foot containers are available, as well as different containers such as flat rack, open top and refrigerated for temperature-sensitive shipments.

Which Factors Impact Ocean Freight Rates?

Shippers who normally receive ocean freight rates for different destinations might notice that the prices might be different throughout the year. There are numerous factors that impact the shipping rates for ocean containers. Here are four of them:

Transshipments

The transshipment process has become a major aspect of international cargo shipping. For new shippers, they should know that transshipment involves routing cargo between locations or vessels during the transportation process before reaching the destination. Many shipping companies might use transshipping for cargo shipments and there are several reasons.

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