The freeport effect – what does it mean and what are the benefits
There’s much more to the UK’s freeports than the ability to move goods tariff-free, with businesses potentially enjoying domestic tax breaks and cheaper employee costs, to encourage manufacturing, jobs and investment, in areas that would otherwise struggle to attract them.
In his Budget la...
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Pricing discipline replaces shipping line competition
The profound supply chain challenges unleashed by the Coronavirus pandemic are transforming the cost and characteristics of global container shipping and the shipping lines are unlikely to surrender a ‘winning-hand’.
Rising container volume demand and a controlled balance of supply and dem...
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Making your supply chain carbon neutral
In an interview with the BBC, Maersk chief executive Soren Skou says greener shipping would cost the world’s biggest shipping lines billions of dollars and while he wants the consumer to pick up the bill, we think that low-cost action can be taken now to offset the carbon emission that shipping...
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Global sea freight latest weekly update
The leading container shipping lines believe that global port and inland infrastructure congestion could last until after the summer peak season and the blanked sailings keep on coming.
The lines’ view is that supply chain disruptions are “temporary issues”, which would be resolved in th...
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Q1 review & Q2 sea freight market report
Time never stands still in global logistics, and as we come towards the end of the first quarter of the year (Q1) and approach the second (Q2), we take a moment to reflect on how 2021 has started, and how we see the deep sea markets further adjusting and progressing as we move into the next perio...
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RoRo fleet confidence returns
The backbone of global automotive transport is the RORO pure car carrier (PCC) or pure car/truck carrier (PCTC), with the largest capable of carrying over 8,000 cars. In a sign that confidence is returning to the automotive industry, the biggest carriers are investing in their fleets and bringing...
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US West Coast operation latest from our colleagues on the ground
Local knowledge is invaluable, which is why we are indebted to our joint venture partners at Fracht USA for providing us with their comprehensive intelligence.
Specialists in complex and turnkey movements for the energy, technology and gas sectors, our joint venture partner Fracht operates out...
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Why the smart money’s on Metro
Relevant, reliable and credible services, that are consistent and proven to deliver.
Historically the biggest volume shippers (BCOs), like supermarkets and the large manufacturers, have contracted directly with the shipping lines, to provide the lines’ base loads, leaving the remaining vesse...
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China overtakes US as EU’s biggest goods trading partner – but for how long ?
China is now the EU's biggest trading partner, overtaking the US, as volumes of goods grew in both directions, propelled by sustained pandemic demand.
As business with Europe's major partners fell due to the COVID-19 pandemic, trade with China (import and export) was worth €586bn last year, ...
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TfL changes raise UK domestic road operating costs
The Direct Vision Standard (DVS) and new rules for London’s Low Emission Zone (LEZ) become enforceable by Transport for London (TfL) from the 1st March 2021.
Both were set to be enforced from October 2020, but had been delayed for four months to allow the freight industry to focus on core op...
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US continued port congestion latest
Congestion at ports on both sides of North America remains a severe issue, though our colleagues in the US advise us that vessel queues may be easing this week in some areas.
Three blanked sailings by the Ocean Alliance should relieve some pressure on US ports, but are putting upward pressure ...
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Pandemic impacting Asia’s growth
The sustained threat of US tariffs through 2019 meant that supply chains were diverted away from China to factories in other regional economies. As the Covid-19 pandemic took hold in January 2020, factories closed, inventories fell and supply chains around the world began to stall.
With manufa...
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