The traditional April network adjustments by the three east-west alliances are likely to take a back seat this year as carriers navigate their way through the fall-out from the week-long Suez Canal blockage. Even before the enforced week-long delay of the waterway’s north and southbound convoys, THE Alliance was the only vessel...
The Suez Canal is set to resume operations today after the 20,388 teu Ever Given was re-floated overnight. While the vessel’s bow remained stuck on one side of the waterway this morning, the high spring tide this afternoon allowed salvors to re-float the entire ship and unblock the waterway after a week...
The UK port of Liverpool will see calls by the 2M transatlantic loop it won from Felixstowe at the end of last year suspended until mid-May, as Maersk and MSC grapple to improve schedule reliability. The 2M alliance said that, as a result of bad weather in the North Atlantic compounded by...
To improve schedule reliability, 2M partners Maersk and MSC are to avoid congested US west coast ports with two transpacific pendulum services. From this week, the AE1/Shogun and AE6/Lion loops from Asia will turn in North Europe instead of going on to the US. And to “facilitate the network adjustments”, the 2M said...
Asia-North Europe container spot rates eased back slightly this week, as carriers ‘hoovered up’ stockpiled cargo accumulated before Chinese New Year. However, rates from Asia to the US increased again. Today’s reading of the Freightos Baltic Index (FBX) for a 40ft from Asia to North Europe was $8,308, compared with $8,430 a week...
The 13,092 teu Maersk Eindhoven (pictured) lost “several hundred containers overboard” as it suffered an engine blackout in bad weather yesterday, near Japan, en route from Xiamen, China to Los Angeles. This latest box spill in the north Pacific will add urgency to a review of lashing practices on ULCVs, and could lead to...
The 2M alliance has announced a further blank sailing this week from Asia to North Europe to use the vessel on another service. The last-minute cancellation of the sailing of the 19,224 teu MSC Erica from Shanghai on 21 February is surprising, given that the ship is due at the port at 4am on Sunday...
Extra loaders deployed by transpacific carriers to meet booming import demand have overwhelmed the US gateways of Los Angeles and Long Beach. According to a survey by Alphaliner, the capacity of the 27 ships berthed and 41 at anchorage at the San Pedro Bay ports stood at a massive 579,100 teu on Monday. The consultant calculated that the 41 ships...
