Category: Supply Chain

Potentially disruptive rail strike averted in US, while, unfortunately, UK braces for more

President Biden’s administration has averted a rail strike that would have caused further issues within the country’s fragile supply chain infrastructure, while rail strikes will recommence  in the UK from October, following the recent deferment of the original a... Read more

US inland port will reduce pressure on Los Angeles and Long Beach

The Mojave Inland Port site is adjacent to the Mojave Air and Space Port, a fully operational airport capable of accommodating large cargo aircraft, with a Union Pacific rail line running through the site and the capacity to handle up to 3,600 trucks a day and three million containers per ye... Read more

Climate change forcing new unexpected factory closures in China

Just a few months after Shanghai emerged from the city-wide COVID lockdowns, which disrupted supply chains and forced factories to halt operations, manufacturers have been closed again, this time by the impact of climate change. A new challenge to Chinese production and sourcing. An inten... Read more

Felixstowe | Liverpool | Railways: Ocean freight container supply chains face triple strike challenge

With rail workers striking tomorrow and Saturday nationally and the Felixstowe Port strike starting on Sunday, for potentially eight days, UK supply chain operations and infrastructure are facing the biggest industrial action challenge in decades. Two of the UK’... Read more

Rhine closure to container barge traffic will have far reaching consequences

Europe’s heatwave forced the closure of the Rhine to barge traffic from last Friday as water levels fell 4cm below the depth necessary for operations, raising fears for container shipping and industrial disruption. The Rhine, the second-largest river in central and western Europe, runs 760 m... Read more

More blank sailings show wisdom of mixed rate portfolio

As we enter the traditional peak season for sea freight, demand for space from China is falling and the lines are taking action to counter over-capacity in the North Europe and Mediterranean trades, while transPacific demand in stasis. As Hapag-Lloyd published its Q2 2022 results, the impact o... Read more

Supply chain pressure index falling

Tensions across the Taiwan Strait are not good news for global supply chains, but after what has arguably been the most challenging 18 months ever, recent data suggests that supply chains could be returning to calmer conditions. Since early 2020 shippers, carriers and 3PLs have battled with a ... Read more

Supply chain disruption may soak up sea freight capacity on major Asian container trades

Capacity from Asia to the West Coast will be 20% higher through September, than last year, but inland supply chain disruption is continuing and threatens to wipe out any benefit from the increased capacity. Carriers serving the US West Coast will have 20% more peak-season capacity from Asia, c... Read more

The world’s largest container shipping lines – and there are not that many!

With around 80% of global trade transported by sea and three major shipping alliances controlling 95% of the critical trade lanes from Asia to North America and Europe, a handful of shipping lines have massive influence over the cost and effectiveness of international trade. The three major sh... Read more

China/Hong Kong update; cross-border trucking capacity cut

Increasing COVID case numbers in China are cutting cross-border trucking capacity, prompting carriers to drop calls at Hong Kong, raising fears that the city is losing shipping line favour as a transhipment hub. With almost one million people in lockdown in Wuhan, where COVID was first detecte... Read more

92% of Felixstowe port workers vote for August strike

The vote in favour of strike action in August, in a dispute over pay, would bring Felixstowe to a standstill and cause major disruption to port operations and road haulage transport of containers to and from terminals. The Unite Union’s 1900 members at the port voted overwhelmingly in favour... Read more

Protecting supply chains from extreme weather events

With wildfires across southern Europe and the UK experiencing it’s hottest ever heatwave - with freight trains cancelled and the port of Felixstowe putting their gritters out, to overcome melting roads - we review research from the Supply Chain Management Center at the University of Maryland on... Read more