Road Archives | Page 8 of 13

Supply chain; a year in review

Dec 19, 2023 | 4PL, Air, Automotive, China, Customs, eCommerce, Environment, EU, Exports, Foodstuffs, General, International Trade, Logistics, Metro, MVT, Retail, Road, Sea, Supply Chain, Technology, United States

2023 was supposed to be the year that global supply chains bounced back from pandemic lockdowns and factory shutdowns, trade wars, tariffs and war in Europe, but now container shipping is disrupted by attacks in the Red Sea and restrictions on the Panama Canal.

The COVID pandemic and its aftermath, with supply-side fluctuations, shipping delays and port congestion created a logistics storm so brutal that many wondered if supply chains would ever recover.

The dramatic increase in consumer spending during the pandemic that left shippers scrambling for air, road and sea space, quickly fell away at the beginning of the year as consumers faced potential recession and a cost of living crisis.

That fall in demand provided the breathing space for carriers and ports to resolve their capacity and performance issues, clear backlogs and reposition equipment effectively, with markets reverting to pre-pandemic levels in terms of capacity and pricing.

The uncertainties surrounding tariffs, trade wars and geopolitical tensions remain, but there has been no significant move away from China, though we are seeing some diversification of sourcing, with Vietnam and Bangladesh - among other origins - increasingly popular.

While container shipping demand fell away the global shortage of RoRo capacity for finished vehicle shipments led to some car manufacturers to acquire their own vessel assets, while others looked to our containerised shipping solutions, for cheaper sea freight movement and certainty of service.

On the air freight front, having joined the Air France, KLM, Martinair Cargo Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) programme in 2022, we were extremely pleased to support their second sustainable flight challenge in the summer, which was followed a few months later by the first transatlantic SAF-powered crossing, accelerating the transition to a more sustainable airline industry.

Metro’s road freight division has grown significantly in 2023, with more team members joining our UK Birmingham HQ and new support operations located close by manufacturing hubs in Desford and Wythenshawe.

Under new leadership the road freight team have increased European FTL/LTL capability, adding more lanes and expanded our groupage offering, alongside the increasingly popular European Distribution (EU/DDP) solutions.

As the UK deferred post-Brexit food checks for the 5th time, to avoid adding to food inflation, the EU expanded its Emissions Trading System to the container shipping sector, in a move that will cost carriers, and by extension shippers, $Billions from the start of 2024.

In a move that took the market by surprise (but shouldn’t have) the European Commission announced that it would not renew the container shipping sector’s Consortia Block Exemption to operating alliances in 2024.

Despite the initial panic, it is likely that the EC’s decision will have little real impact, particularly as the Maersk and MSC 2M alliance was already ending, with the others likely to reorganise into new structures.

With 2024 just weeks away, scheduled Trans-Pacific and Asia to North Europe container shipping capacity was up 30% and 10%, raising fears of a massive blank sailing program to try and support rates, but now, with the Suez Canal transit suspended and Panama Canal disruption, we may see increased rates and delays, with air freight’s popularity rising.

We are hopeful that the US and coalition navies can restore maritime security quickly, because the prolonged re-routing of vessels away from the Suez Canal, via the Cape of Good Hope will increase transit times and costs, with a massive reduction in available capacity and a return to equipment imbalances.

Whatever challenges 2024 may bring, you can rest assured that we will keep you informed and protected, because we always have your back covered.

HMRC export deadline and rogue hauliers

Dec 6, 2023 | Customs, Exports, Road, Technology

With the deadline fast approaching for export declarations moving to the Customs Declaration Service HMRC are highlighting a worrying trend at the border, with misuse of valid documents leaving innocent exporters potentially non-compliant and exposed to penalties.

In their latest Customs Declaration Service (CDS) update HMRC remind traders that all export declarations must move from their legacy Customs Handling of Import and Export Freight (CHIEF) system to CDS by Saturday 30th March 2024.

We are continuing to work with our customers, setting them up on CDS for all export routes and the different types of export declaration submitted at the UK border, including Transit (TAD) and the Goods Vehicle Movement Service (GVMS).

It is these latter two that HMRC focused on, in highlighting Goods Movement Reference (GMR) errors by hauliers that are leading to issues at the UK and EU border.

Consistent misuse of valid export CDS documents where the transit document is being used for the convenience of the haulier means that shipments are not arrived in the correct manner.

Exporters have a legal obligation to pre-lodge declarations if they are moving their goods through a location using GVMS and pass evidence of this for a haulier to complete a GMR.

Hauliers have a legal obligation to carry evidence that pre-lodged customs declarations or reference numbers for Simplified Customs Procedure authorised traders are in place for all the goods they are moving.

This is met by hauliers completing a GMR which must include a declaration reference for each consignment as proof that a pre-lodged declaration has been made.

Carriers require a valid GMR to be presented at the port of departure before allowing the vehicle or trailer to board.

HMRC’s issue is that hauliers are inappropriately using TAD MRN (transit document) as suitable evidence for the export MRN reference, irrespective of what else is loaded to the trailer, which is not the case when a DUCR has been issued..

The correct use of DUCR or MUCR being advised to customs allows the authorities to “arrive” the customs entry, which means that there is a permanent record of the despatch of the goods so the VAT liability for the shipment is discharged and the zero rated document raised by the shipper becomes validated.

Incorrect GVMS entries by hauliers leads to missing data on exporters MSS reports, missing critical data in terms of managed Customs facilities such as stock records for CFSP locations, which leads to extra admin and inventory shortages, both serious matters.

These export process are incredibly complex and should be of no concern to exporters, but unfortunately many (non-Metro customers) are being caught out by the carriers’ non-compliance.

We work closely with our road transport partners to ensure they have the correct documentation and submit the correct information to GVMS through CDS.

Our CuDoS customs platform automatically monitors the status of export declarations and will flag potential non-compliance issues.

If you have any concerns or questions, regarding CDS or export compliance please EMAIL Andy Fitchett, Brokerage Manager.

EU road toll increases start in Germany

Dec 6, 2023 | EU, Road

Increases in HGV road toll charges in Germany, which includes an additional CO2 emissions tax of €200 per tonne began on the 1st December 2023 and for vehicle combinations with a gross vehicle weight of up to 40 tons, prices will increase by almost 86% – giving 35.4 cents per kilometre.

The German MAUT, officially known as the Infrastructure Usage Charge or Levy, was introduced to finance and maintain Germany's highway infrastructure.

Funding is therefore paid not only by German carriers, but all those delivering, collecting or transiting the country, with the increase in freight prices passed on by the hauliers to their customers.

Depending on the vehicle weight capacity, number of axles and the emission class there will be an increase in German MAUT ( Toll ) of circa €0.158 per km. Therefore, if transiting through Germany from the Netherlands border to Poland, a distance of circa 700 kms using the Toll roads, this is an increase of circa €110.00 per trip.

The 1st December was the start date for trucks with a gross vehicle weight of more than 7.5 tons, while from 1st July 2024 the German Maut system will be expanded to include vehicles with a technically permissible total weight of 3.5 tons or more.

The toll is a fixed government tax and will be charged as a cent amount per kilometre driven. In particular, the CO2 emission class, the weight, the number of axles and the pollutant class of a vehicle have an influence on the amount of the surcharge.

On the 1st October 2023, there was a 17.6% increase in the cost of the Hungarian toll system, while Austria and the Czech Republic are raising tolls in January and March 2024, following Germany's Maut increase.

Austria's tolls will increase by 20-30%, and the Czech Republic's tolls will increase by 10-15%

The toll increases are a result of an EU directive to introduce road tolls based on CO2 emissions and ALL member states are tasked with implementing such a system by the 24th March 2024 at the latest.

Metro’s road freight teams are located close by major manufacturing and transport hubs in Birmingham, Desford and Wythenshawe.

To learn more about our expanded European capability, including our Customs Brokerage (CuDoS), European Distribution (EU/DDP), short-sea services and intermodal solutions, EMAIL Richard Gibbs.

Road freight review; August 2023

Aug 30, 2023 | Road

Despite the European road freight sector largely showing a picture of weak recovery, amidst an uncertain, challenging and complex market environment, our European operations are expanding and the team continues to grow.

The market moderation seen in the second half of 2022 has spilled over into 2023 and as a result, the European road freight market is projected to lose speed in 2023, expanding by only 1.4% in real terms.

Ti’s latest State of Logistics Road Freight Survey 2023 reveals that 84% of road freight operators are currently experiencing increased pressure on margins as costs soar and demand from their customer base weakens.

The market appears to be recalibrating after experiencing a hefty double-digit surge in 2022, but it’s doubtful that it will return to pre-pandemic conditions, especially with capacity shortages and any jump in demand from European economies might further exacerbate the shortage of drivers.

As volumes dropped off in Q1 and 2, the correlated increase in available capacity eased pressure on rates, but capacity is often constrained by driver shortages.

The outlook is for rates to stabilise, although seasonal demand may support higher rates and they are expected to remain at a higher level than their pre-pandemic base.

Despite shrinking industrial production and rising costs, the need for road transport remains high in many sectors, with targeted growth and expansion within the EU road freight sector a strategic priority for Metro’s support of customers, particularly in the automotive, manufacturing, chemical and food industries.

Major investments are being ploughed into European rail freight infrastructure, including in the UK, while UK Export Finance (UKEF) is helping finance a high-speed 286 km electric rail connection in southern Turkey, conditional to UK exporters supplying the project.

On a less positive note, road transport in Germany is facing a drastic increase in the HGV motorway toll charge, to fund the development of rail infrastructure.

Berlin plans to increase the LKW-Maut toll for a 40-tonne truck from €0.19 to between €0.35 and €40 per kilometre, depending on various factors, from 1st January 2024, which means hauliers could face up to a 70-80% increase in road toll charges.

The motorway freight traffic toll was previously used exclusively for road improvements, but from 2024 Berlin wants the increase in road tolls from the new CO2 surcharge to be earmarked for rail infrastructure modernisation, which would be a significant boost for the rail sector.

Metro’s road freight teams are located close by manufacturing hubs in Birmingham, Desford and Wythenshawe, with new recruits recently joining the latter location and commercial teams.

To learn more about our expanded European FTL/LTL capability, including our Customs Brokerage (CuDoS) and European Distribution (EU/DDP) solutions EMAIL Richard Gibbs.