Freight

Nike warns of shortages as ocean congestion, Vietnam shutdowns hurt inventory

Pre-pandemic, it took Nike about 40 days to move product from Asia to North America, said CFO Matt Friend. That has since doubled.

By Max Garland • Sept. 27, 2021

Shanghai terminal closure further strained air cargo capacity in August

COVID-19-related disruptions have sparked noticeable swings in availability and spot rates, even as capacity recovers.

By Max Garland • Sept. 24, 2021

Toymakers worry congestion will lead to holiday inventory troubles

The time it takes to ship products from China to the U.S. increased by 83% in September compared to before the pandemic, according to Freightos.

By Alejandra Salgado • Sept. 23, 2021

Los Angeles, Long Beach ports extend truck hours amid cargo deluge

The ports' latest tweaks to their hours come after months of congestion and surging consumer demand.

By Jim Stinson • Sept. 23, 2021

Retail's new fad? Charter ships to ensure sales, even if it's costly.

Companies are willing to spend money on chartering ships because the alternative of not having inventory in for peak season is worse, said Sea-Intelligence CEO and Founder Alan Murphy.

By Max Garland • Sept. 22, 2021

Opinion

Supply chain challenges aren't going away anytime soon

Businesses and consumers should prepare for continued disruption and increased costs, writes a supply chain expert at CBRE.

By Joe Dunlap • Sept. 21, 2021

LTLs become selective about freight as demand booms

Carriers have to make tough decisions to preserve quality of customer service.

By Jim Stinson • Sept. 17, 2021

FMC announces 2 initiatives related to detention, demurrage and compliance

This is the latest action from the Federal Maritime Commission to address issues in the ocean shipping industry, as the pandemic brought forward a series of complaints.

By Alejandra Salgado • Sept. 16, 2021

Maersk buys omnichannel tech startup, furthering end-to-end ambitions

The ocean carrier invested in Huub back in 2019, and is now acquiring the cloud-based logistics startup with hopes of scaling it.

By Edwin Lopez • Sept. 15, 2021

Tight capacity, high rates leave Joann looking for cargo space

The crafts company is among retailers paying higher prices to guarantee space on ocean vessels. 

By Alejandra Salgado • Sept. 14, 2021

Long Beach port offers drivers traffic alerts via text to fight congestion

The free Truck Alert system aims to assuage some frustrations resulting from a deluge of imports.

By Shefali Kapadia , S.L. Fuller • Sept. 13, 2021

LA, Long Beach port congestion could disrupt $90B in trade: Russell

Solutions for a congested freight environment include shippers booking in advance even it means paying extra, carriers doubling orders for container ships and 3PLs adding drayage surcharges.

By Alejandra Salgado • Sept. 09, 2021

Deep Dive

Aircraft emissions present a roadblock to supply chain sustainability goals

FedEx's Chief Sustainability Officer says true aviation sustainability "is an intractable problem." Will environmentally conscious shippers move away from airfreight?

By Max Garland • Sept. 08, 2021

Canadian National clears way for KCS, CP deal

Canadian National said it would not pursue an acquisition with Kansas City Southern "any further" after the U.S. railroad said it preferred to be acquired by Canadian Pacific.

By Edwin Lopez • UPDATED: Sept. 15, 2021 at 10:08 a.m.

Truck makers struggle to fill backlog of orders as supply chain issues continue

Unproduced orders are getting pushed into next year, potentially creating "even more headaches for the industry," according to one freight analyst. 

By Jim Stinson • Sept. 02, 2021

CH Robinson introduces drayage congestion surcharge for major US ports

Ports and the drayage providers that serve them have been walloped by a spike in volume and a lack of labor and equipment to quickly handle it.

By Max Garland • Sept. 02, 2021

Carriers double container ship orders in 2021 as freight demand shows no signs of slowing

The orders still do not solve the immediate problem of current supply chain congestion as it will take years for the final delivery of the new vessels.

By Alejandra Salgado • Sept. 01, 2021

Geodis leases freighter to secure capacity in tight air cargo market

The forwarder said the A330-300 aircraft, which is leased for a minimum of five years, will also fly between China and Europe during peak season.

By Max Garland • Sept. 01, 2021

A tale of two dollar stores: Dollar Tree contends with freight, Dollar General mostly shrugs off costs

The $1 price point means limited options for mitigating expenses as supply chain congestion leads to extraordinary cost increases.

By Ben Unglesbee • Aug. 31, 2021

Consolidation in ocean shipping: A 20-year journey puts scrutiny on carriers

After Hanjin's bankruptcy, carriers continued to band together to scale operations and provide shippers a global footprint. Now the White House is taking a closer look.

By Matt Leonard • Aug. 31, 2021

Gatik opens Texas hub for autonomous middle-mile deliveries

The AV company, known for delivering goods for Walmart, will deploy box trucks in response to heightened e-commerce demand.

By Max Garland • Aug. 31, 2021

Ida disrupts freight movement after making landfall as Category 4 hurricane

Rescue and relief efforts are underway, but the damage to infrastructure and impact on business could be long term. 

By Shefali Kapadia • Aug. 30, 2021

White House appoints 'port envoy' to tackle congestion, bottlenecks

John Porcari's appointment follows months of conversations between supply chain stakeholders and the Department of Transportation.

By Edwin Lopez • Aug. 30, 2021

5 years of supply chain disruptions and the lessons learned

Hindsight has the virtue of revealing opportunities we may have missed.

By Edwin Lopez • UPDATED: Sept. 21, 2021 at 11:12 a.m.

Air cargo carriers shift operations as Shanghai disruption drags on

Changes due to disruption at Shanghai Pudong International Airport have already affected at least one major shipper.

By Max Garland • Aug. 26, 2021