Newsletter – February 27, 2023

OCEAN FREIGHT UPDATES

Turkish Airlines weighs in as relief efforts step up and supply chains recover

theloadstar.com
Turkey’s manufacturing sector could take at least eight months to recover from the damage wrought by the earthquake at the start of February.
This is the assessment of Bindiya Vakil, CEO and co-founder of supply chain mapping and monitoring firm Resilinc, who told The Loadstar the country must expect a “very long and demanding” recovery process. Read more here (login required).

Numerous Flights Canceled Amid Strikes At Dusseldorf Airport

simpleflying.com
The latest industrial action from German trade union ver.di will see flights canceled at the two largest airports in North Rhine-Westphalia – Düsseldorf Airport (DUS) and Cologne/Bonn Airport (CGN). The warning strike will begin first at Cologne/Bonn Airport overnight on Sunday, with action at Düsseldorf Airport to begin soon after – both strikes will end overnight Monday to Tuesday. Read more here.

OCEAN FREIGHT UPDATES

Ukraine to establish $500m ship insurance fund

splash247.com
In a bid to get more grain exports moving, Ukraine’s parliament has approved a $500m insurance fund to offer compensation for any ships damaged calling at its ports.
Ukraine is gearing up to renegotiate the terms of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, a deal with warring foe Russia created in July last year which allows Kyiv to export grain from three Black Sea ports. Read more here.

Li-ion batteries pose a risk to freight ro-ro services

theloadstar.com
Lithium-ion (li-ion) battery fires on board containerships have already claimed a couple of high-profile victims, the X-Press Pearl and perhaps the Maersk Honam.
Less well understood, but still a great threat, is the risk posed by electric vehicles (EVs), which are stacked full of li-ion batteries, to car carriers, or the risks involved in the carriage of used EVs on ro-pax vessels. Read more here.

GROUND FREIGHT UPDATES

Truckload market has 25% too much capacity 

freightwaves.com
The Contract Load Accepted Volume Index (CLAV), which measures accepted truckload tender volumes, is 25% lower than the peak values in 2021. With rejected tenders being near historic highs at that point, we can assume this was the limit to the amount of volume carriers could handle.
Considering exits are just now starting to outpace entrants, according to recent Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration data, 25% may be a smidge low after a year of new authorizations. How long will capacity take to be more in line with demand? Read more here.

CANADA BUSINESS – GOVERNMENT UPDATES

Canada tightens ballast water regulations

splash247.com
Canada’s Minister of Transport Omar Alghabra last week announced funding of C$12.5m ($9.2m) to launch the Ballast Water Innovation Program, part of its Oceans Protection Plan. The program, a central component of the Government of Canada’s efforts to advance the implementation and enforcement of the 2021 Ballast Water Regulations, will play an important role in further reducing the spread of aquatic invasive species in the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River by investing in innovative solutions to ballast water management. Read more here.