Newsletter – May 19, 2023

AIR FREIGHT UPDATES

Strike Averted: Last Minute Agreement Saves WestJet Disruption

simpleflying.com
Representatives for WestJet pilots voted to approve an Agreement-In-Principle with WestJet management just hours before a walkout was scheduled. To occur. The announcement follows over nine months of negotiations on a new pilot contract.
The Canadian airline, which has about a third of the domestic market share, will call a membership vote on the agreement in the coming days. Read more here.

Air Canada Cargo begins Costa Rica freighter service

aircargonews.net
Air Canada Cargo has started freighter flights into San José, Costa Rica using a Boeing 767-300 converted freighter.
The flights to Juan Santamaría International Airport will operate twice per week, said the cargo carrier. Read more here.

Luxembourg Airport back up and running after Cargolux incident

aircargonews.net
Luxembourg Airport is back up to full capacity after a Cargolux freighter’s landing gear bogie detached during an emergency landing causing a runway closure.
On April 14 at around 19:00hrs the B747-400F reported a technical defect after take-off in Luxembourg and had to return to the airport where the landing gear detached on landing. Read more here.

OCEAN FREIGHT UPDATES

ONE and Wan Hai cop FMC fines

splash247.com
Two ocean common carriers have paid a combined total of $2.65m in civil penalties to resolve allegations of misconduct brought by the Federal Maritime Commission’s Bureau of Enforcement, Investigations, and Compliance.
Ocean Network Express (ONE) entered into a compromise agreement with the FMC in April to resolve allegations it violated American rules by assessing detention charges when appointments were unavailable during allocated free time to return equipment. Read more here.

Ageing inventories defeat shipping lines’ GRI plans

theloadstar.com
US container import volumes fell by 21% in April, compared with the same month of last year, according to the latest analysis by consultant John McCown ? and there are no signs of an early recovery in demand.
The Port of Los Angeles, for example, saw its import container throughput collapse by a quarter last month to 343,688 teu, from the elevated highs of a year ago, when at times there were 100 ships anchored outside the San Pedro Bay area … Read more here.

15,000 ships to be scrapped by 2032: BIMCO

splash247.com
The long-awaited flood of ship scrap candidates could top most projections, new analysis from BIMCO, the world’s largest shipping organisation, suggests.
Analysts have long been talking up prospects for an avalanche of vintage ships heading for demolition amid a period of growing green regulations and the global merchant fleet getting older and older. Read more here.

CANADA GOVERNMENT – BUSINESS UPDATES

North American Freight Markets Show Signs of Picking Up in Second Half

bloomberg.com
A new wave of data shows that North American freight markets are still contending with reduced volumes and demand relative to pandemic heydays, but signs are emerging of an improvement heading into the second half of the year.
Total freight spending in the region fell for a fifth straight month in April from a month earlier to the lowest since September 2021, a seasonally adjusted expenditure index compiled by Cass Information Systems showed. Read more here.