<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">Global air cargo traffic soared by 11.7 percent in February, driven largely by the timing of the Chinese lunar New Year and the congestion at U.S. West Coast ports, the International Air Transport Association reported.</div>

Global air cargo traffic soared by 11.7 percent in February, driven largely by the timing of the Chinese lunar New Year and the congestion at U.S. West Coast ports, the International Air Transport Association reported.

<div>Global air cargo traffic soared by 11.7 percent in February, driven largely by the timing of the Chinese lunar New Year and the congestion at U.S. West Coast ports, the International Air Transport Association reported.There was a surge in shipments in the weeks leading up to the New Year vacation which fell in January in 2014, the industry body said. The West Coast port congestion also played a role in boosting Asia-Pacific traffic by 20.8 percent year-on-year, outpacing a 12.7 percent increase in capacity, as “significant” automotive exports from Japan to the U.S. shifted from sea to air transport.“A combination...

Global air cargo traffic soared by 11.7 percent in February, driven largely by the timing of the Chinese lunar New Year and the congestion at U.S. West Coast ports, the International Air Transport Association reported. There was a surge in shipments in the weeks leading up to the New Year vacation which fell in January in 2014, the industry body said. The West Coast port congestion also played a role in boosting Asia-Pacific traffic by 20.8 percent year-on-year, outpacing a 12.7 percent increase in capacity, as “significant” automotive exports from Japan to the U.S. shifted from sea to air transport. “A combination of factors made February the strongest month in a very strong time for air freight. Nobody expects growth to continue at this pace,” said Tony Tyler, IATA’s director-general. “As we look forward, however, there is room for optimism. Business confidence improved slightly and trade continues to grow. The year is shaping up in line with a growth expectation of 4-5 percent.” The buoyant IATA figures were supported by those of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA), which reported that air freight carried by Asian carriers grew by a solid 12.8 percent in the first two months of the year compared to the same period in 2014.The pre-lunar new year shipment rush came early this year, with freight activity picking up in late January and the first half of February. But even though the comparisons were skewed, international air cargo demand registered a hefty 20.5 percent jump in February year-over-year.“Air freight demand achieved an impressive 12.8 percent increase during the two month period, with robust demand for Asian exports, particularly to North America, where the recent port dispute affected some maritime shipping operations,” said Andrew Herdman, AAPA director general. IATA data showed that North American carriers grew freight traffic by 8.7 percent from a year ago, helped by a combination of port congestion and an improving U.S. economy. Capacity was up by just 0.7 percent. Middle East airlines posted a 17.6 percent increase as they continued to capitalize on their strong geographic base and expand their networks by attracting more transit freight through their hubs. Capacity increased by 19.2 percent. In contrast, IATA reported the once buoyant Latin American market shrank by 9.6 percent as increased regional trade flows failed to offset the economic downturn in Brazil and Argentina. European carriers saw traffic edge up by just 1.1 percent as the region’s economic recession and the sanctions on Russia dampened demand. African airlines boosted volume by 8.3 percent as regional trade growth more than offset the impact of the weakness of the South African and Nigerian economies. Contact Bruce Barnard at brucebarnard47@hotmail.com .

Air Cargo

Global air cargo soars on Chinese New Year, US port congestion

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">New bottlenecks in Louisiana and Mississippi are now affecting freight flows between Mexico and the Southeast US.</div>

New bottlenecks in Louisiana and Mississippi are now affecting freight flows between Mexico and the Southeast US.

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<div class="phx-topic">Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) is making progress in restoring normal rail service in the southern US following a troubled systems integration, but the epicenter of disruptions has shifted from Texas to critical points in Louisiana and Mississippi, where intermodal and carload traffic converge. Congestion initially began in Laredo and Wylie, Texas, outside Dallas after a <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/cpkc-grapples-with-complaints-over-us-canada-terminal-operations-6009914">May 3 systems upgrade</a> went poorly as CPKC was transitioning legacy Kansas City Southern (KCS) systems to Canadian Pacific networks. Service in Wylie has largely returned to normal, but new bottlenecks in Shreveport, Louisiana, and Jackson, Mississippi, are now affecting freight flows between Mexico and the Southeast US. “CPKC is continuing to devote the resources and attention necessary to return service levels to the normal range expeditiously,” CPKC wrote in a <a href="https://www.stb.gov/cpkc-merger-oversight/">June 25 letter</a> to the US Surface Transportation Board (STB). “CPKC continues to project that it will achieve a return of service performance to the normal range for the vast majority of customers by the second half of July.” CPKC dwell times in the hot spots have risen sharply since May, according to data from the Association of American Railroads (AAR). In Shreveport, the railroad’s average dwell time has increased nearly 70% year over year in the last seven weeks. In Jackson, it is up 77%. In Laredo, another intermodal crew change location, CPKC dwells have skyrocketed 127% during the same period, according to the AAR data. CPKC told the STB that company executives remain stationed at key locations, including Shreveport and Jackson, to address the ongoing issues. Inconsistent container flow Shreveport is the largest switching yard on the former Kansas City Southern network, while Jackson is the second-largest. Switching yards primarily handle non-containerized freight, but Jackson and Shreveport also serve as crew change locations for intermodal trains traveling between Mexico/Texas and the Southeast. Multiple CPKC customers have said the flow of containers between Mexico/Texas and the Southeast has been inconsistent in recent weeks. “On northbound Mexico to the Southeast, we experienced long delays at the ramp after customs cleared but before boxes were loaded and moved on a train, although it has improved in the last week,” one customer said. “Customer service is struggling [and] getting information on distressed freight is difficult.” A second customer said their shipments have gotten stuck in various Gulf Coast locations in recent weeks. CPKC told the STB the on-time performance to deliver railcars to non-containerized customers improved in all parts of the network week over week through June 20, but the on-time performance of manifest trains, which carry a mix of cargo and go into yards such as Jackson and Shreveport, fell week over week, to 55.8%. Delays in Jackson and Shreveport also affect interchange partners such as CSX Transportation and Norfolk Southern Railway (NS). Train crews are scheduled around expected handoff times, but when CPKC trains arrive late, crews on connecting railroads can exhaust their federally mandated hours before reaching the next crew change point, further compounding delays. NS interchanges freight with CPKC in Shreveport and Meridian, Mississippi, while CSX exchanges containers in Myrtlewood, Alabama. CPKC said it plans to focus on this stretch of the network in the coming week. “[Staff] will maintain their in-person presence at locations across the legacy KCS network to support operating personnel and customers … with a focus in the coming week on the Southeast Division (areas east and southeast of Shreveport),” the railroad said in its letter to the STB. Contact Ari Ashe at <a href="mailto:ari.ashe@spglobal.com">ari.ashe@spglobal.com</a>.</div>

Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) is making progress in restoring normal rail service in the southern US following a troubled systems integration, but the epicenter of disruptions has shifted from Texas to critical points in Louisiana and Mississippi, where intermodal and carload traffic converge. Congestion initially began in Laredo and Wylie, Texas, outside Dallas after a May 3 systems upgrade went poorly as CPKC was transitioning legacy Kansas City Southern (KCS) systems to Canadian Pacific networks. Service in Wylie has largely returned to normal, but new bottlenecks in Shreveport, Louisiana, and Jackson, Mississippi, are now affecting freight flows between Mexico and the Southeast US. “CPKC is continuing to devote the resources and attention necessary to return service levels to the normal range expeditiously,” CPKC wrote in a June 25 letter to the US Surface Transportation Board (STB). “CPKC continues to project that it will achieve a return of service performance to the normal range for the vast majority of customers by the second half of July.” CPKC dwell times in the hot spots have risen sharply since May, according to data from the Association of American Railroads (AAR). In Shreveport, the railroad’s average dwell time has increased nearly 70% year over year in the last seven weeks. In Jackson, it is up 77%. In Laredo, another intermodal crew change location, CPKC dwells have skyrocketed 127% during the same period, according to the AAR data. CPKC told the STB that company executives remain stationed at key locations, including Shreveport and Jackson, to address the ongoing issues. Inconsistent container flow Shreveport is the largest switching yard on the former Kansas City Southern network, while Jackson is the second-largest. Switching yards primarily handle non-containerized freight, but Jackson and Shreveport also serve as crew change locations for intermodal trains traveling between Mexico/Texas and the Southeast. Multiple CPKC customers have said the flow of containers between Mexico/Texas and the Southeast has been inconsistent in recent weeks. “On northbound Mexico to the Southeast, we experienced long delays at the ramp after customs cleared but before boxes were loaded and moved on a train, although it has improved in the last week,” one customer said. “Customer service is struggling [and] getting information on distressed freight is difficult.” A second customer said their shipments have gotten stuck in various Gulf Coast locations in recent weeks. CPKC told the STB the on-time performance to deliver railcars to non-containerized customers improved in all parts of the network week over week through June 20, but the on-time performance of manifest trains, which carry a mix of cargo and go into yards such as Jackson and Shreveport, fell week over week, to 55.8%. Delays in Jackson and Shreveport also affect interchange partners such as CSX Transportation and Norfolk Southern Railway (NS). Train crews are scheduled around expected handoff times, but when CPKC trains arrive late, crews on connecting railroads can exhaust their federally mandated hours before reaching the next crew change point, further compounding delays. NS interchanges freight with CPKC in Shreveport and Meridian, Mississippi, while CSX exchanges containers in Myrtlewood, Alabama. CPKC said it plans to focus on this stretch of the network in the coming week. “[Staff] will maintain their in-person presence at locations across the legacy KCS network to support operating personnel and customers … with a focus in the coming week on the Southeast Division (areas east and southeast of Shreveport),” the railroad said in its letter to the STB. Contact Ari Ashe at ari.ashe@spglobal.com .

North-American rail

CPKC disruptions in Gulf states now impacting carload, intermodal traffic

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">Diversifying suppliers out of China has been a long-term trend among tech companies, but a recent acceleration of that shift is driven by fresh trade tensions rather than a desire to divest entirely, says Everstream Analytics.</div>

Diversifying suppliers out of China has been a long-term trend among tech companies, but a recent acceleration of that shift is driven by fresh trade tensions rather than a desire to divest entirely, says Everstream Analytics.

<div class="phx-topic">Escalating trade tensions and ongoing tariff uncertainties are adding to rising labor costs, prompting technology giants to accelerate the diversification of suppliers away from China, according to a new report from supply chain insight provider Everstream Analytics. While the diversification of manufacturing has been a long-term trend, the recent increase in that shift is being driven more by the need to reduce short-term risk in the face of recent trade disruption rather than a desire to completely divest from China, noted Jena Santoro, global head of research and analytics at Everstream. “Our analysis shows Thailand and Vietnam have nearly doubled their tech suppliers since 2019, while companies like HP are committing to move 90% of their manufacturing out of China by next year,” Santoro told the Journal of Commerce Thursday. The report, “Shifting away from China,” analyzed supplier data from 2019 to 2024 from tech majors that included Samsung, Apple, Dell, Nokia and NXP, and found the companies were moving core product lines to alternative manufacturing centers. India, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and Taiwan have emerged as the most prominent alternative suppliers to China for the technology industry, the report found. The products most affected by the diversification strategies were smartphones, smart watches, computers and laptops. “But the reality is that China spent more than 30 years building its manufacturing ecosystem, and it may take just as long for alternatives to match that scale,” Santoro said. “So, while companies are absolutely diversifying, and they need to, this is about reducing risk, not replacing China entirely. At least not anytime soon.” <h3>End of 90-day pause on tariffs </h3>The Everstream report highlighted the upcoming end to the 90-day pause on US tariffs on China on Aug. 14 and the trade restrictions that could be imposed following its expiry. “Trade between China and the US remains unstable, with the current negotiations only resulting in a 90-day pause on the escalated tariff scheme, which includes a 125% import tariff on Chinese goods,” the report stated. “This level of tariff would make many technology products prohibitively expensive if manufactured entirely in China, creating strong financial incentives for diversification,” it added. “Global technology manufacturers will likely continue to seek alternative suppliers in countries perceived as less risky for business continuity.” On top of the trade tensions are long-term trends in China’s workforce that have led to an increasingly less cost-efficient labor market, a factor that has long encouraged companies to consider investing in cheaper production systems in other parts of the world as a way to increase margins. That trend shows no signs of reversal, as China no longer has the developing economy wages it once had. “Given these ... realities, technology supply chains with procurement operations integrated in China have become less stable and reliably more expensive than potential alternatives,” the Everstream report found. Contact Greg Knowler at <a href="mailto:greg.knowler@spglobal.com">greg.knowler@spglobal.com.</a></div>

Escalating trade tensions and ongoing tariff uncertainties are adding to rising labor costs, prompting technology giants to accelerate the diversification of suppliers away from China, according to a new report from supply chain insight provider Everstream Analytics. While the diversification of manufacturing has been a long-term trend, the recent increase in that shift is being driven more by the need to reduce short-term risk in the face of recent trade disruption rather than a desire to completely divest from China, noted Jena Santoro, global head of research and analytics at Everstream. “Our analysis shows Thailand and Vietnam have nearly doubled their tech suppliers since 2019, while companies like HP are committing to move 90% of their manufacturing out of China by next year,” Santoro told the Journal of Commerce Thursday. The report, “Shifting away from China,” analyzed supplier data from 2019 to 2024 from tech majors that included Samsung, Apple, Dell, Nokia and NXP, and found the companies were moving core product lines to alternative manufacturing centers. India, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and Taiwan have emerged as the most prominent alternative suppliers to China for the technology industry, the report found. The products most affected by the diversification strategies were smartphones, smart watches, computers and laptops. “But the reality is that China spent more than 30 years building its manufacturing ecosystem, and it may take just as long for alternatives to match that scale,” Santoro said. “So, while companies are absolutely diversifying, and they need to, this is about reducing risk, not replacing China entirely. At least not anytime soon.” End of 90-day pause on tariffs The Everstream report highlighted the upcoming end to the 90-day pause on US tariffs on China on Aug. 14 and the trade restrictions that could be imposed following its expiry. “Trade between China and the US remains unstable, with the current negotiations only resulting in a 90-day pause on the escalated tariff scheme, which includes a 125% import tariff on Chinese goods,” the report stated. “This level of tariff would make many technology products prohibitively expensive if manufactured entirely in China, creating strong financial incentives for diversification,” it added. “Global technology manufacturers will likely continue to seek alternative suppliers in countries perceived as less risky for business continuity.” On top of the trade tensions are long-term trends in China’s workforce that have led to an increasingly less cost-efficient labor market, a factor that has long encouraged companies to consider investing in cheaper production systems in other parts of the world as a way to increase margins. That trend shows no signs of reversal, as China no longer has the developing economy wages it once had. “Given these ... realities, technology supply chains with procurement operations integrated in China have become less stable and reliably more expensive than potential alternatives,” the Everstream report found. Contact Greg Knowler at greg.knowler@spglobal.com.

Transport, Trade and Regulation News

Supply chain

Tech giants shift production out of China as trade tariffs raise supply risk: analysis

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">The carrier said vessels on the five-day transit to Philadelphia will carry food, apparel, industrial products and consumer goods. </div>

The carrier said vessels on the five-day transit to Philadelphia will carry food, apparel, industrial products and consumer goods.

<div class="phx-topic">US-based ocean carrier Crowley will expand its intra-Americas network in July with a new direct service linking ports in Guatemala and Honduras to Philadelphia. The five-day transit will be Crowley’s first route between Central America and the US Northeast Coast. The first northbound voyage for the service, using the 1,400-TEU Copan, will leave Central America for Philadelphia on July 3. A statement from Crowley this week announcing the service did not provide details on its frequency but said the vessels will carry food, apparel, industrial products and consumer goods. Reinier van Delden, vice president of commercial operations for Crowley Logistics, said in the statement the service, using new LNG-powered vessels, will “deliver the fastest transit times in the market.” “This means less inventory idle time, lower supply chain costs, and longer shelf life for critical products like fresh produce,” he said. The service, which van Delden said already has “significant booking commitments,” will serve Central America’s Northern Zone, which includes El Salvador and Nicaragua in addition to Guatemala and Honduras. The vessels used by Crowley for the service can carry various container sizes for dry cargo and have capacity for 300 refrigerated boxes. According to data from PIERS, a sister company of the Journal of Commerce within S&amp;P Global, import volumes from Central America’s Northern Zone into the East Coast of North America have been relatively steady in recent years; May 2025 volumes of 50,121 TEUs were down just 3.3% from May 2019. PIERS data shows imports from the Northern Zone accounted for 3.2% of imports to the East Coast of North America in May. In March, which is the peak season for Central American plantain exports, that share climbed to 3.6%. Northbound perishables cargo includes plantains, pineapples and melons, according to PIERS. The new service from Crowley comes after the company launched in May a three-day ocean service from Tuxpan, Mexico, to Gulfport, Mississippi. Crowley also started a <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/crowley-cn-strike-mexico-intermodal-deal-through-port-of-mobile-5220379">multimodal Mexico-US service in 2023</a>. Also this week, Green Tide Logistics <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/mexico-us-ocean-market-expands-amid-growing-nearshoring-interest-6031786">announced a combined truck-ocean service</a> linking the Gulf Coast of Mexico with Philadelphia. Contact Laura Robb at <a href="mailto:laura.robb@spglobal.com">laura.robb@spglobal.com</a>.  </div>

US-based ocean carrier Crowley will expand its intra-Americas network in July with a new direct service linking ports in Guatemala and Honduras to Philadelphia. The five-day transit will be Crowley’s first route between Central America and the US Northeast Coast. The first northbound voyage for the service, using the 1,400-TEU Copan, will leave Central America for Philadelphia on July 3. A statement from Crowley this week announcing the service did not provide details on its frequency but said the vessels will carry food, apparel, industrial products and consumer goods. Reinier van Delden, vice president of commercial operations for Crowley Logistics, said in the statement the service, using new LNG-powered vessels, will “deliver the fastest transit times in the market.” “This means less inventory idle time, lower supply chain costs, and longer shelf life for critical products like fresh produce,” he said. The service, which van Delden said already has “significant booking commitments,” will serve Central America’s Northern Zone, which includes El Salvador and Nicaragua in addition to Guatemala and Honduras. The vessels used by Crowley for the service can carry various container sizes for dry cargo and have capacity for 300 refrigerated boxes. According to data from PIERS, a sister company of the Journal of Commerce within S&P Global, import volumes from Central America’s Northern Zone into the East Coast of North America have been relatively steady in recent years; May 2025 volumes of 50,121 TEUs were down just 3.3% from May 2019. PIERS data shows imports from the Northern Zone accounted for 3.2% of imports to the East Coast of North America in May. In March, which is the peak season for Central American plantain exports, that share climbed to 3.6%. Northbound perishables cargo includes plantains, pineapples and melons, according to PIERS. The new service from Crowley comes after the company launched in May a three-day ocean service from Tuxpan, Mexico, to Gulfport, Mississippi. Crowley also started a multimodal Mexico-US service in 2023 . Also this week, Green Tide Logistics announced a combined truck-ocean service linking the Gulf Coast of Mexico with Philadelphia. Contact Laura Robb at laura.robb@spglobal.com . 

Maritime

Container Shipping News

Container lines

Crowley launches first service linking Central America to US Northeast Coast

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">Swire, UWL’s original partner for the express service to Seattle, will phase out its vessels during July while new partner Emirate Shipping Line rotates into the loop.</div>

Swire, UWL’s original partner for the express service to Seattle, will phase out its vessels during July while new partner Emirate Shipping Line rotates into the loop.

<div class="phx-topic">Third-party logistics provider UWL is switching the ocean carrier it uses for its Vietnamese trans-Pacific container service to Seattle — and swapping in a new China call on the loop — with a view to eventually offering weekly sailings on the niche service. UWL Chief Executive Duncan Wright said in a letter to customers this week the company signed a contract with Emirates Shipping Line (ESL) to become the new vessel operator on its Sun Chief Express Service, replacing Swire Shipping, part of Asian conglomerate Swire Group. UWL originally partnered with Swire <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/new-vietnam-pnw-express-service-comes-amid-rise-in-se-asia-imports-5195234">to launch the Sun Chief Express in 2022</a>. The service connects Vietnam’s Hai Phong and Ho Chi Minh City ports with Seattle, offering about 2,700 TEUs in biweekly vessel capacity and an approximate 20-day sailing time. Wright said that while UWL was vetting other vessel operators for possibly offering a weekly service, Swire decided to “phase out” its involvement in the Sun Chief service. The last Swire ship will depart Ho Chi Minh port on July 14, while two westbound sailings during July on Swire vessels will be blanked as part of the phaseout. The first ESL vessel, the 2,782-TEU Bright, will depart Ho Chi Minh port on July 22. It will call Shekou in China before continuing to Seattle. The Sun Chief service will remain biweekly for the time being. Dubai-based ESL is the 23rd-largest ocean carrier globally, focusing chiefly on “niche and emerging trade lanes across Asia, the Middle East, and Africa,” UWL said. ESL operates a fleet of 11 ships, with capacities ranging between 2,700 TEUS and 6,700 TEUs. UWL added that ESL’s experience in the intra-Asia trade will allow the Sun Chief to eventually serve “additional key markets across Southeast Asia and the Indian Subcontinent.” Contact Michael Angell at <a href="mailto:michael.angell@spglobal.com">michael.angell@spglobal.com</a>. </div>

Third-party logistics provider UWL is switching the ocean carrier it uses for its Vietnamese trans-Pacific container service to Seattle — and swapping in a new China call on the loop — with a view to eventually offering weekly sailings on the niche service. UWL Chief Executive Duncan Wright said in a letter to customers this week the company signed a contract with Emirates Shipping Line (ESL) to become the new vessel operator on its Sun Chief Express Service, replacing Swire Shipping, part of Asian conglomerate Swire Group. UWL originally partnered with Swire to launch the Sun Chief Express in 2022 . The service connects Vietnam’s Hai Phong and Ho Chi Minh City ports with Seattle, offering about 2,700 TEUs in biweekly vessel capacity and an approximate 20-day sailing time. Wright said that while UWL was vetting other vessel operators for possibly offering a weekly service, Swire decided to “phase out” its involvement in the Sun Chief service. The last Swire ship will depart Ho Chi Minh port on July 14, while two westbound sailings during July on Swire vessels will be blanked as part of the phaseout. The first ESL vessel, the 2,782-TEU Bright, will depart Ho Chi Minh port on July 22. It will call Shekou in China before continuing to Seattle. The Sun Chief service will remain biweekly for the time being. Dubai-based ESL is the 23rd-largest ocean carrier globally, focusing chiefly on “niche and emerging trade lanes across Asia, the Middle East, and Africa,” UWL said. ESL operates a fleet of 11 ships, with capacities ranging between 2,700 TEUS and 6,700 TEUs. UWL added that ESL’s experience in the intra-Asia trade will allow the Sun Chief to eventually serve “additional key markets across Southeast Asia and the Indian Subcontinent.” Contact Michael Angell at michael.angell@spglobal.com .

Trans-Pacific

UWL locks in new vessel partner for trans-Pacific Vietnam service

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">Unifor, the union representing more than 2,100 truck drivers, couriers, and warehouse and clerical workers in seven Canadian provinces, will vote on the agreement on Friday and Saturday.</div>

Unifor, the union representing more than 2,100 truck drivers, couriers, and warehouse and clerical workers in seven Canadian provinces, will vote on the agreement on Friday and Saturday.

<div class="phx-topic">DHL Express Canada and its union have reached an agreement in principle to end a contract dispute that forced the parcel carrier to shut down service in the country late last week. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Unifor, the union representing more than 2,100 truck drivers, couriers, and warehouse and clerical workers in seven Canadian provinces, will vote on the tentative deal on Friday and Saturday. “Upon successful ratification, DHL Express Canada expects to lift [the] service suspension with immediate effect,” the company said in a statement late Wednesday. DHL Express Canada locked out Unifor workers on June 8 after the two sides couldn’t reach a deal on a new collective bargaining agreement. DHL was <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/dhl-express-to-suspend-canadian-parcel-business-amid-labor-dispute-6026786">forced to shut down service</a> as of June 20, the day Canadian federal legislation preventing the use of replacement workers went into effect. As a result, DHL stopped accepting parcels within Canada as well as cross-border US-Canada business. The move did not affect the company’s less-than-truckload or other supply chain service businesses. DHL’s competitors such as Canada Post, FedEx, and UPS were operating normally, so the overall disruption within Canada was minimal. Nevertheless, shippers who had to make last-minute changes were paying higher rates. Contact Ari Ashe at <a href="mailto:ari.ashe@spglobal.com">ari.ashe@spglobal.com</a>. </div>

DHL Express Canada and its union have reached an agreement in principle to end a contract dispute that forced the parcel carrier to shut down service in the country late last week. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Unifor, the union representing more than 2,100 truck drivers, couriers, and warehouse and clerical workers in seven Canadian provinces, will vote on the tentative deal on Friday and Saturday. “Upon successful ratification, DHL Express Canada expects to lift [the] service suspension with immediate effect,” the company said in a statement late Wednesday. DHL Express Canada locked out Unifor workers on June 8 after the two sides couldn’t reach a deal on a new collective bargaining agreement. DHL was forced to shut down service as of June 20, the day Canadian federal legislation preventing the use of replacement workers went into effect. As a result, DHL stopped accepting parcels within Canada as well as cross-border US-Canada business. The move did not affect the company’s less-than-truckload or other supply chain service businesses. DHL’s competitors such as Canada Post, FedEx, and UPS were operating normally, so the overall disruption within Canada was minimal. Nevertheless, shippers who had to make last-minute changes were paying higher rates. Contact Ari Ashe at ari.ashe@spglobal.com .

Surface

Trucking labor

Trucking News

DHL, union workers reach tentative deal to end Canadian work stoppage

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The world of LTL is slow to embrace change. Business anachronisms permeate current supply chain processes. These vestiges of the way things used to work define the LTL freight transportation procurement process of many modern shippers.David Knuth, logistics specialist at IEWC, a global supplier of cable and wire based in Wisconsin, is happy to have modernized the RFP process, automating the entire LTL bidding procedure with Bid$ense, SMC³’s automated truckload and LTL freight transportation sourcing solution. But when prompted, he can still recall what once was.In his previous job, a large part of his duties were consumed by creating an intermodal bid package for carriers. In a spreadsheet, Knuth detailed the company’s volumes lane by lane, taking care to delete any errant keystrokes or misleading data. He would then email out the information to each carrier, taking time to respond to detailed technical questions about the spreadsheet data. Finally, he had to compile all the results, create an algorithm that would compare the carriers on each lane, and award the business.“It was a huge undertaking. It took about four months to do,” Knuth said of the old process. “It was almost a full-time job for that part of the year, every year.”In his new job at IEWC, he sat down with Bid$ense on day one and was amazed at the capabilities. Knuth had never before used a bid tool. SMC³’s latest versions of Bid$ense automate the process even further, taking truckload and LTL RFPs entirely online. The tool draws on RFP best-practices protocols to streamline the bidding communication process, enabling bidding carriers to respond accurately and promptly to shipper requests. The solution also does all the distribution work automatically, electronically submitting shipper bid data to carriers based on their actual service capabilities and performance records. Carriers are alerted with timely prompts for RFP deliverables, so shippers aren’t waiting by the phone for responses.Another benefit of automating the process is the data-cleansing assistance. When Knuth sent spreadsheets to carriers, data errors might cloud the bidding process; he might have to resend data or simply accept a price that did not truly reflect the costs of doing business. Data cleansing is incredibly beneficial, he said.The spreadsheet technique also made bidding analysis an onerous task. Since Bid$ense automates and streamlines the entire RFP process, intensive examination is now simple. SMC³ knows that each bid has more than one best outcome. With uniform responses from each carrier, shippers can quickly rank results and create an unlimited quantity of what-if scenarios to make the optimal procurement decision.Jesse Burnett of Central Garden &amp; Pet experiences many of the same benefits. Founded in 1980, Central Garden &amp; Pet has spent the last three decades growing from a small garden supply company to a provider of a range of products from dog chews and bird seed to soil supplements and natural insecticides. For much of its life, the company shipped these disparate goods via LTL and truckload carriers to retailers throughout the country, relying on each business unit to negotiate directly with their freight transportation providers. This arrangement worked fairly well for a small company, but as Central Garden &amp; Pet expanded, leadership decided to consolidate decision making.Burnett helped centralize the transportation decision making in 2015 with SMC³’s Bid$ense. Before Bid$ense, every business unit operated independently as far as negotiating with carriers.“There were a lot of different things just floating around,” he said. “We didn’t have master agreements in place; no national pricing at all. The pricing from carriers was just all over the place, depending on where you were.”The transformations he saw with Bid$ense were immediate. Burnett has been using the tool about every other year since its implementation at the company. Central Garden and Pet’s $19.6 million 2019 LTL bid saved the company just more than 9 percent when compared to its historical average. For Burnett, though, bid automation extends far beyond savings.“We knew that we weren’t getting the best pricing offer from our carriers just because nothing was centralized,” he continued. “We knew that if we combined everything from all these business units and paired it with one corporate offering, then it would drive some cost benefit with it.”When the company initially decided to centralize bid procurement, executives researched a number of different methodologies and technologies. In the end, though, Burnett found that Bid$ense was both widespread and well known, and that his carrier partners already knew how to use the application. Burnett also highlighted the data-cleansing process as a major benefit, saying the rigorous process ensures that carriers always return the best price.“It definitely has helped drive savings,” he said. “Any time you go out there and you drive that competitiveness with the carriers and they know they’re in a bid environment, it seems to sharpen their pencils.”Transportation procurement is an integral part of the modern supply chain. With Bid$ense, shippers can develop a strategic implementation plan that saves them time and money, but also helps them create strong relationships with their carrier partners. These carriers appreciate the solution’s data-cleansing process; when carriers receive a complete shipment history and future volume forecast, they don’t have to guess on pricing. Carriers that receive more data from shippers get a complete picture of that shipper’s freight, allowing them to accurately plan instead of simply preparing for the worst-case scenario. Clean data presented through an automated system can lead to both bigger shipment savings and a lasting partnership between carrier and customer.Whether customers are looking to streamline over-the-road transportation bidding by automating the RFP process or create an entirely new, centralized sourcing process, Bid$ense has the analytical horsepower to get the job done.SMC³ 2020 Customer Case Study

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Shippers save money, time with automated transportation bidding tools

If there’s one immutable truth in the world of logistics, it’s this: LTL is an inherently complex form of transportation. Tariffs, rates, DIM weights, transit times — it’s enough to confuse even seasoned logistics professionals. The solution to this knowledge gap has historically been on-the-job training or university supply chain education, but for a variety of reasons there is now a pressing need for third-party, remote LTL training that prepares logistics workers for transportation success. Global Scope Can Overlook Local Intricacies In the past, professionals looking to move into a supply chain career learned about the basics of supply chain from universities. However, many of these college supply chain programs are now global in scope, focusing on worldwide supply chain management instead of the intricacies of specialized domestic transportation. And even these programs, which used to be widespread, are becoming less common. LTL is not an industry of broad-brush strokes; supply chain professionals really need a pointillistic understanding of the logistics of LTL in order to excel in the industry. Accelerating Need for Dedicated LTL Education This lack of specified training put the onus on employers to prepare new hires with the LTL knowledge needed to do their jobs. Dedicated LTL study is a necessity, not a luxury. At the same time, changes in LTL and the broader supply chain world are accelerating. The reliance on e-commerce has ballooned since the start of the pandemic, and last-mile LTL shipments and related e-commerce strains on the supply chain won’t diminish once social distancing abates. That genie isn’t going back into the bottle. So supply chain employers need logistics workers that are fully versed in all aspects of the industry, ready to solve unique shipping and delivery problems based on their extensive supply chain knowledge But why care about LTL? It’s been reported that some shippers in today’s world are no longer concerned with what mode is used to ship their goods. A Multimodal Approach Ensures On-Time Delivery This mode agnosticism means supply chain stakeholders have to be well versed in all modes of transportation. As unforeseen weather events and other disruptions, such as protests, become more common, savvy logistics employees will need to be armed with familiarity of all modes, not just the most popular, to ensure that freight is delivered on time, without damage, and in the most financially expedient way possible. Offerings like SMC³’s LTL online education courses cover a wide range of topics from LTL basics and operations to more advanced concepts like pricing analytics and transportation law. The company also has plans to continually refresh content, adding new expert presenters and taking the feedback of students to make the courses even better as time goes on. Learn more about&nbsp;<a href="https://logisticstrainingcenter.com/smc3-courses/" rel="noreferrer" class="joc_admin__link">SMC³’s LTL Online Education program</a>&nbsp;and view the 2021 hybrid schedule, featuring live industry experts,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.smc3.com/onlinelearning2021/" rel="noreferrer" class="joc_admin__link">here.</a>

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Filling the Supply Chain Education Gap with LTL Education Courses

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