Newsletter – September 19, 2023

OCEAN FREIGHT UPDATES

Maersk insists CMA CGM deal is not a change in green strategy

theloadstar.com
Still in the afterglow of its “new age” of green methanol-fuelled shipping launched last week, Maersk ? despite its anti-LNG stance ?  has set up a new cooperation with CMA CGM on green fuels.
According to a statement today, the collaboration will establish a “framework of mass production of green methane and green methanol”. Read more here (login required).

For exporters, container shipping still far from pre-COVID ‘normal’

freightwaves.com
Container rates for U.S. imports have normalized. Rates for America’s exports have not. Both spot and contract rates for U.S. exports are still up double digits from pre-COVID levels.
And rates are not the biggest cost issue exporters face, according to Peter Friedmann, executive director of the Agriculture Transportation Coalition. Read more here

US box imports drop in August

container-news.com
Container imports to the United States reached 21.9 million TEUs in August (based on volumes at ports of origin), falling 12.6% year on year, but increasing 0.8% from July, according to Descartes Datamyne.
At the same time, exports from 10 major Asian economies accounted for 1.55 million TEUs, translating to a drop of 13.1% from a year earlier. This is the 13 consecutive monthly year on year decline for this figure. However, from the previous month, exports from 10 major Asian economies picked up 1.7%. Read more here 

Ballast water from Japanese ships tested for radioactivity in Chinag

container-news.com
Chinese ports have apparently begun testing the ballast water of Japanese ships for radioactive material, after the Japanese government began releasing radioactive water from the quake-damaged Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant in late August. Read more here 

GROUND AND RAIL FREIGHT UPDATES

Quebec to invest $59M in charging stations, electrification of commercial transport

trucknews.com
The Quebec government has tabled its strategy for electric vehicle charging (stratégie québécoise sur la recharge de véhicules électriques), with a specific section dedicated to medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicles. Read more here

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS – GOVERNMENT UPDATES

Retail workers are fed up and quitting at record rates

financialpost.com
To be a United States retail worker in 2023 means fielding an onslaught of growing American anxieties about everything from high prices to politics. Increasingly, some workers say the job isn’t worth the wages.
To be a United States retail worker in 2023 means fielding an onslaught of growing American anxieties about everything from high prices to politics. Increasingly, some workers say the job isn’t worth the wages. Read more here