Newsletter – July 15, 2020

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    Jul

    Newsletter – July 15, 2020
    AIR FREIGHT UPDATES
    Transpacific airfreight rates edge back up
    aircargonews.net
    Transpacific airfreight rates increased last week as two US carriers temporarily back tracked on their plans for services to Hong Kong.
    The latest figures from TAC Index show that airfreight rates from Shanghai to North America increased by 4.2% week on week to $4.69 per kg while from Hong Kong to North America prices edged up by 4.2% to $4.74 per kg. Read more here.
    OCEAN FREIGHT UPDATES
    Box ship charter market bounces back as idled vessels are recalled to duty
    theloadstar.com
    Over 120 idled containerships have been reactivated since 22 June, according to Alphaliner, as green shoots of a peak season slowly emerge.
    As at 6 July, the consultant recorded an inactive fleet of 375 vessels with a capacity of 1.85m teu, significantly down from the 453 ships for 2.32m teu reported to be in hot and cold lay-up just two weeks earlier. Read more here.
    Some Chinese Ports Are Jammed Again on Virus Testing of Food
    bloomberg.com
    Intensive testing of meat, seafood and other products for the coronavirus has tripled customs clearance times at some major Chinese ports, raising concerns the delays could ensnare global trade flows.
    It normally takes about three days to clear the produce but is now taking as long as 10, said an official with Bojun Supply Chain Co., which provides buyers with customs clearance services on foods including frozen products. Read more here.
    CANADA BUSINESS – GOVERNMENT UPDATES
    Federal Wage Subsidy for Businesses to Be Extended to December: Trudeau
    cbc.ca
    Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said today the federal government is extending the emergency wage subsidy program to December of this year.
    The program covers 75 percent of wages for workers at eligible companies and non-profits affected by the economic slowdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
    Read more in an article from CBC News.
    Amazon’s Quebec DC open for business
    insidelogistics.ca
    LACHINE, Quebec – Amazon’s first fulfillment centre in Quebec officially celebrated “day one” earlier this month with its newest employees.
    The fulfillment centre will continue to ramp up to full operations over the next several weeks and will have more than 300 employees by the 2020 holiday shopping season. Read more here.
    INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS – GOVERNMENT UPDATES
    June productivity rebound suggests a return to growth, but it’s bumpy ahead
    theloadstar.com
    Economic figures for June indicate that the global economy appears to have turned the corner from the hit from Covid-19, with trade and production volumes trending up on both sides of the Pacific Basin.
    However, recovery is expected to be bumpy in the coming months as the surge in Covid-19 infections in multiple economies impacts economic activity. Read more here.
    White Paper: Retail Inventory Strategies at the Time of COVID-19
    ciffa.com
    Transport Intelligence (Ti) has issued a white paper that looks at the struggles retailers have faced with their supply chain management strategies during the coronavirus lockdown.
    In order to meet these challenges, the report notes that retailers have employed a mix of strategies, including:
    • Cancelling or postponing existing orders
    • Use of secondary markets or ‘factory stores’ for marked-down product
    • Sales as soon as reopening allowed
    • ‘Hibernating’ stock for use in 2021
    • Rebalancing operations to online
    “Retailers with flexible and agile supply chains (i.e., those able to react to changing market conditions the quickest) will come out of the pandemic the strongest,” says the report’s author, John Manners-Bell, CEO of Ti.
    Download the white paper here.

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