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UK failing to deliver on overnight parking pledge Ian Matheson, from Impress Communications, reviews some recent news that might impact on Members’ business
days after the charges stop accruing; and provide 30 days to dispute the charges with clear information about how charges should be disputed. Container lines continued their attempts in October at managing service capacity to support freight rates, as volumes fell and congestion eased. Drewry noted 64 cancelled sailings across the transpacific, transatlantic and Asia- North Europe and Mediterranean trades for the two weeks beginning October 17. However, carriers’ attempts at capacity management appeared to have had little effect as freight rates continued to fall week- on-week as reflected in the World Container Index. HSBC’s global head of shipping & ports research, Parash Jain, forecasts that container freight rates are expected to hit a trough in mid- 2023 as spot rates fall. He noted that spot rates reported by the Shanghai Containerized Freight Index (SCFI) had fallen by 51% since the end of July – a decline of 7.5% per week. IN BUSINESS The 2022 Barclays-BDO Logistics Confidence Index has revealed that mergers and acquisitions continue to be a strategic priority for logistics companies with 45% of respondents to a survey reporting that they are likely to make an acquisition in the next 12 months, the highest figure ever recorded in this survey’s 10-year history. Operators are seeking to achieve economies of scale and expand their service offering, ingraining a trend for consolidation into what remains a fragmented industry. ON THE QUAYSIDE Construction of DP World’s new all- electric, fourth berth at London Gateway has officially started in a £350 million investment that will increase capacity by a third and further enable the port to provide greater flexibility and choice to customers.
OVERLAND Designated sites such as truck stops and motorway service areas do not have space for more than a fifth of the HGVs that park overnight near major roads in England, according to a PA news agency analysis of a government- commissioned report. This is despite the government pledge to the haulage industry in July last year that it would drive efforts to “improve the quantity and quality of overnight facilities”. The National Crime Agency and Border Force have issued guidance for hauliers on illegal migration across road haulage, with the
agencies having an amber alert for such activity.
volumes continue to slide. Bruce Chan, Stifel director global logistics, told the Baltic Exchange that with more inventory in the system, more fluidity in the supply chain, less residual boost from fiscal and stimulus policy and uncertainty over the direction of the global economy, Stifel does not believe there will be much of a peak. The International Civil Aviation Organization adopted a long-term global aspirational goal in October for international aviation of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. This puts great pressure on the International Maritime Organization, which still has some homework to do before a fixed date is set for ocean shipping to become climate neutral. ON THE OCEAN Labour disputes and port workers’ strikes worldwide will continue to cause severe disruptions in container ports, Drewry reported in October. Several of these ports face heavy congestion challenges, with container shipping lines trying to divert their vessels away from the impacted ports and terminals to minimise schedule disruptions. The US Federal Maritime Commission is proposing a new rule that seeks to bring more clarity, structure and punctuality to the demurrage and detention billing practices of vessel operating common carriers (VOCCs), non- vessel-operating common carriers (NVOCCs), and marine terminal operators (MTOs). If the rule is adopted, all will be required to issue bills for demurrage or detention only to parties with which they have a contractual relationship; to be clear regarding the nature of the charges; issue invoices within 30
IN THE AIR Global air cargo market data released by IATA in August demonstrated the industry’s resilience amid economic uncertainties. Global demand, measured in cargo tonne-kilometers (CTK), fell 8.3% compared with August 2021 (-9.3% for international operations), whilst capacity was 6.3% above August 2021 (+6.1% for international operations). The air cargo industry should expect a non-existent, or at best muted, peak season as rates and
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November 2022
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