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<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">The 9/11 Commission Act’s mandate that 100 percent of cargo transported on passenger aircraft be screened for explosives by August 2010 reflects a critical security need of the U.S.</div>

The 9/11 Commission Act’s mandate that 100 percent of cargo transported on passenger aircraft be screened for explosives by August 2010 reflects a critical security need of the U.S.

<div>The 9/11 Commission Act’s mandate that 100 percent of cargo transported on passenger aircraft be screened for explosives by August 2010 reflects a critical security need of the U.S. transportation system. Few people realize most air cargo is transported in the belly of passenger planes. Few also realize that, although carry-on baggage has long been screened, until the 9/11 Act, aircraft operators were not required to screen air cargo. Action by Congress has changed this, but the real effectiveness of the screening may depend on another high-profile law, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. I believe the U.S. could greatly...

The 9/11 Commission Act’s mandate that 100 percent of cargo transported on passenger aircraft be screened for explosives by August 2010 reflects a critical security need of the U.S. transportation system. Few people realize most air cargo is transported in the belly of passenger planes. Few also realize that, although carry-on baggage has long been screened, until the 9/11 Act, aircraft operators were not required to screen air cargo. Action by Congress has changed this, but the real effectiveness of the screening may depend on another high-profile law, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. I believe the U.S. could greatly improve the effectiveness of its air cargo screening measures by allocating a small portion of stimulus money to the Transportation Security Administration’s Certified Cargo Screening Program. Meeting the August 2010 deadline puts a huge burden on the air cargo industry, primarily because the mandate for 100 percent screening does not provide for funding to entities to meet the requirements. Industry stakeholders must voluntarily foot the bill for adopting procedures, acquiring equipment, hiring staff, training, implementation, coordination and insurance. Many stakeholders are small companies operating on razor-thin profit margins. As much as possible, they will try to pass the cargo screening costs to shippers, which would raise the price of goods. The stakeholders — and the manufacturers and buyers they serve — further fear 100 percent screening will cause paralyzing delays and bottlenecks, which could cripple their business and hurt overall economic recovery. In addition, the stakeholders face potentially huge liability if they make a mistake in cargo screening and an air catastrophe results. Stimulus funding would provide critical assistance. A small amount of funding would provide huge benefits to the stakeholders. There are a couple possible sources for funds. First, the TSA is allotted approximately $1 billion to spend on projects to improve airport security. Approximately $30 billion more was allocated for transportation investments. That money was given out to states and metropolitan planning organizations, largely free of any criteria or requirements for what projects it should be spent on. Looking at the TSA funds first, of the $1 billion allocated for aviation security projects, $700 million is dedicated to screening checked baggage and $300 million is allocated for checkpoint explosives-detection technology. Strangely, no funds are allocated to improving air cargo screening capabilities. According to a Sept. 10 press release, the Department of Homeland Security has obligated more than 30 percent of its aviation security-related stimulus funds and was on track to obligate more than 50 percent by the end of September. Thus, as of this month, approximately $500 million in stimulus funds dedicated to aviation security remains outstanding. Allotting some of the remaining stimulus funds to air cargo security would meet the dual requirements of infusing resources into local economies quickly while meeting critical security needs. The stakeholders even have a government-mandated shovel-ready project that the stakeholders need money to implement. On Sept. 16, the TSA issued the Interim Final Rule for the Certified Cargo Screening Program, a voluntary program intended to help meet the 100 percent screening milestone by allowing entities in the air cargo supply chain to screen cargo away from an airport and transport it to the airport securely, without the need for rescreening. Upon acceptance of screened cargo from a CCSP participant, aircraft operators must verify the chain of custody for the cargo is unbroken. Any company in the cargo supply chain can become a Certified Cargo Screening Facility. A forwarder can become a CCSF to screen its customers’ cargo, for example. The TSA is encouraging companies to establish independent air cargo screening facilities. The agency and some in the industry believe operators of certified facilities could sell their services to forwarders and shippers, operating as security “car washes” open to any person needing cargo screened. Once cargo is screened by a CCSF with secure delivery capability, it can be sent directly to the aircraft, bypassing the line of cargo awaiting on-site screening. A second source of funding is the nearly $30 billion allocated for transportation investments given to states and metropolitan planning organizations. Many airports are operated by local municipalities and act as critical transportation hubs for local economies. The ability to move air cargo quickly will provide a key competitive edge come August 2010. An airport without sufficient air cargo screening capabilities will lose business to airports supported by strong CCSFs. State and local governments should use these transportation funds to help local companies become CCSFs and ensure their airports remain competitive in the post-9/11 world. The dual goals of improving aviation security, while assisting economic recovery, are worthy of stimulus funding. Providing stimulus funding to companies in the air cargo supply chain to help them carry out the government’s CCSP accomplishes both. John Knab is an attorney at Garvey Schubert Barer in Washington, D.C. He can be contacted at jknab@gsblaw.com .

Screening Needs a Stimulus

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">A meeting of the interested parties kicked off what will likely be a year-long process to select developers to design, build and operate the two terminals at Corozal on the Pacific side of the canal and Colón on the Atlantic that will cost a combined $2.6 billion. </div>

A meeting of the interested parties kicked off what will likely be a year-long process to select developers to design, build and operate the two terminals at Corozal on the Pacific side of the canal and Colón on the Atlantic that will cost a combined $2.6 billion.

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<div class="phx-topic">CMA CGM, Cosco Shipping, Hapag-Lloyd, Maersk, DP World and Singapore’s PSA International are among 22 carriers and terminal operators that have expressed interest in developing two container terminals on the Atlantic and Pacific sides of the Panama Canal. The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) confirmed in a statement Monday that executives from the interested parties attended a briefing to discuss the $2.6 billion project, although it did not say when the event took place. The meeting kicked off what ACP said will likely be a year-long process to select developers to design, build and operate the two terminals at Corozal on the Pacific side of the canal and Colón on the Atlantic. Explaining the next steps, the ACP said market and feasibility studies will be done for both terminals, followed by the development of a project plan. That will start the competitive bid process that will see companies invited to pre-qualify to bid for each terminal. Those selected to bid will hold talks with ACP as part of the tender process before the authority chooses the successful concessionaire. “The final phase of the concessionaire selection is expected to conclude in the fourth quarter of 2026,” ACP said. The terminals will have an initial combined capacity of 5 million TEUs and focus mainly on transshipment traffic. “(The terminals) will strengthen Panama’s position as one of the world’s most competitive intermodal hubs, and expand port capacity in the interoceanic area, which is currently operating near its limit,” the ACP said. <h3>Project revived amid US-China terminal wrangling </h3>The terminals are part of an $8.5 billion, 10-year investment plan announced by ACP Administrator Ricaurte Vásquez Morales on Sept. 16. ACP originally planned to develop the Corozal container terminal in 2016, but the project foundered when none of the four shortlisted companies, including APM Terminals, PSA International and CMA CGM, submitted a bid. ACP revived the Corozal terminal project earlier this year following the geopolitical wrangling between the US and China that engulfed the proposed sale of Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison’s 90% interest in the Panama Port Company to BlackRock and Mediterranean Shipping Co.’s terminal arm. Morales told the Journal of Commerce in June that reviving the Corozal project would help allay concerns about the canal’s neutrality and competitiveness as its existing container terminals are concentrated among a handful of operators. At the time, he said the Corozal Container Terminal should be a common-user facility, open to all carriers. The Colón container terminal has since been added to the overall project. Besides CMA CGM, Cosco, Hapag-Lloyd and Maersk, ACP said Monday the other carrier participants at its latest meeting about the project were Ocean Network Express (ONE), Evergreen Line, HMM, MSC, OOCL, Yang Ming and ZIM Integrated Shipping Services. In addition to PSA and DP World, the terminal operators represented were APM Terminals, Cosco Shipping Ports, CMA Terminals, Hanseatic Global Terminals (part of Hapag-Lloyd), MOL Group, Port of Houston, SSA Marine–Grupo Carrix and MSC’s Terminal Investment Ltd. Contact Keith Wallis at <a href="mailto:keithwallis@hotmail.com">keithwallis@hotmail.com</a>. </div>

CMA CGM, Cosco Shipping, Hapag-Lloyd, Maersk, DP World and Singapore’s PSA International are among 22 carriers and terminal operators that have expressed interest in developing two container terminals on the Atlantic and Pacific sides of the Panama Canal. The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) confirmed in a statement Monday that executives from the interested parties attended a briefing to discuss the $2.6 billion project, although it did not say when the event took place. The meeting kicked off what ACP said will likely be a year-long process to select developers to design, build and operate the two terminals at Corozal on the Pacific side of the canal and Colón on the Atlantic. Explaining the next steps, the ACP said market and feasibility studies will be done for both terminals, followed by the development of a project plan. That will start the competitive bid process that will see companies invited to pre-qualify to bid for each terminal. Those selected to bid will hold talks with ACP as part of the tender process before the authority chooses the successful concessionaire. “The final phase of the concessionaire selection is expected to conclude in the fourth quarter of 2026,” ACP said. The terminals will have an initial combined capacity of 5 million TEUs and focus mainly on transshipment traffic. “(The terminals) will strengthen Panama’s position as one of the world’s most competitive intermodal hubs, and expand port capacity in the interoceanic area, which is currently operating near its limit,” the ACP said. Project revived amid US-China terminal wrangling The terminals are part of an $8.5 billion, 10-year investment plan announced by ACP Administrator Ricaurte Vásquez Morales on Sept. 16. ACP originally planned to develop the Corozal container terminal in 2016, but the project foundered when none of the four shortlisted companies, including APM Terminals, PSA International and CMA CGM, submitted a bid. ACP revived the Corozal terminal project earlier this year following the geopolitical wrangling between the US and China that engulfed the proposed sale of Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison’s 90% interest in the Panama Port Company to BlackRock and Mediterranean Shipping Co.’s terminal arm. Morales told the Journal of Commerce in June that reviving the Corozal project would help allay concerns about the canal’s neutrality and competitiveness as its existing container terminals are concentrated among a handful of operators. At the time, he said the Corozal Container Terminal should be a common-user facility, open to all carriers. The Colón container terminal has since been added to the overall project. Besides CMA CGM, Cosco, Hapag-Lloyd and Maersk, ACP said Monday the other carrier participants at its latest meeting about the project were Ocean Network Express (ONE), Evergreen Line, HMM, MSC, OOCL, Yang Ming and ZIM Integrated Shipping Services. In addition to PSA and DP World, the terminal operators represented were APM Terminals, Cosco Shipping Ports, CMA Terminals, Hanseatic Global Terminals (part of Hapag-Lloyd), MOL Group, Port of Houston, SSA Marine–Grupo Carrix and MSC’s Terminal Investment Ltd. Contact Keith Wallis at keithwallis@hotmail.com .

Panama’s twin terminal project attracts interest from 22 carriers, operators

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">The investigation by Australian authorities involves alleged share sales activity in late 2024 and early 2025 by Chairman Richard White and three employees. </div>

The investigation by Australian authorities involves alleged share sales activity in late 2024 and early 2025 by Chairman Richard White and three employees.

<div class="phx-topic">The Sydney offices of logistics software provider WiseTech Global were raided Tuesday by Australian authorities investigating alleged insider trading by the company’s founder and chairman Richard White, Australian media outlets reported Tuesday. The raid, conducted by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission and the Australian Federal Police, is tied to “alleged trading in WiseTech shares by Richard White and three WiseTech employees during the period from late 2024 to early 2025,” WiseTech said in an announcement to the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) Tuesday morning. The company said no charges have been filed against any individuals or the company itself, and that it intends to “fully cooperate with the investigation.” The federal investigation pertains to alleged sales of WiseTech Global stock during the company’s quiet period before reporting its financial results in February, according to a report Tuesday in the Sydney Morning Herald, one of three news outlets in Australia that investigated sales of WiseTech shares in late 2024 and early 2025. White left his post as CEO of WiseTech, which he founded in 1994, in October 2024 due to a series of allegations of misconduct with employees and women outside the company. He later returned as executive chairman in February 2025. Three months after White’s return, WiseTech made its <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/wisetech-notches-biggest-acquisition-with-21-billion-deal-for-e2open-6011581">biggest ever acquisition</a> in May, buying fellow logistics software provider E2open for $2.1 billion. WiseTech is commonly regarded as the biggest single provider of software solutions to the global third-party logistics (3PL) market, with a majority of the top 100 global 3PLs using all or part of its product suite covering freight management, accounting, trade compliance and visibility. Contact Eric Johnson at <a href="mailto:eric.johnson@spglobal.com">eric.johnson@spglobal.com</a>. </div>

The Sydney offices of logistics software provider WiseTech Global were raided Tuesday by Australian authorities investigating alleged insider trading by the company’s founder and chairman Richard White, Australian media outlets reported Tuesday. The raid, conducted by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission and the Australian Federal Police, is tied to “alleged trading in WiseTech shares by Richard White and three WiseTech employees during the period from late 2024 to early 2025,” WiseTech said in an announcement to the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) Tuesday morning. The company said no charges have been filed against any individuals or the company itself, and that it intends to “fully cooperate with the investigation.” The federal investigation pertains to alleged sales of WiseTech Global stock during the company’s quiet period before reporting its financial results in February, according to a report Tuesday in the Sydney Morning Herald, one of three news outlets in Australia that investigated sales of WiseTech shares in late 2024 and early 2025. White left his post as CEO of WiseTech, which he founded in 1994, in October 2024 due to a series of allegations of misconduct with employees and women outside the company. He later returned as executive chairman in February 2025. Three months after White’s return, WiseTech made its biggest ever acquisition in May, buying fellow logistics software provider E2open for $2.1 billion. WiseTech is commonly regarded as the biggest single provider of software solutions to the global third-party logistics (3PL) market, with a majority of the top 100 global 3PLs using all or part of its product suite covering freight management, accounting, trade compliance and visibility. Contact Eric Johnson at eric.johnson@spglobal.com .

WiseTech Global offices raided over insider trading allegations

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">The Indian government has been wooing global shipping and logistics conglomerates to invest beyond port-to-port shipping operations in the country through liberalized policy and tax frameworks. </div>

The Indian government has been wooing global shipping and logistics conglomerates to invest beyond port-to-port shipping operations in the country through liberalized policy and tax frameworks.

<div class="phx-topic">Ocean carrier heavyweights are increasingly betting on India as an alternative maritime hub as they face ongoing supply chain challenges linked to geopolitical tensions. Maersk has now diversified its business interests in India by reflagging two of its short-haul container ships to the local registry — the 1,810-TEU Maersk Vilnius and the 1,740-TEU Maersk Vigo, both built in 2010. They were previously registered in Singapore. “India is a critical growth market for Maersk, driven by robust economic fundamentals, expanding container trade and significant policy reforms in the maritime sector,” a company spokesperson told the Journal of Commerce. “As part of our continued commitment to strengthening our presence in India, we have registered two of our vessels under the Indian flag.” The Maersk spokesperson also said the carrier will continue to use the flags of Denmark, Singapore and Hong Kong for its fleets. The two reflagged vessels are said to be part of Maersk’s regional networks covering Asian trades. That reflagging move builds on a shipbuilding/repair partnership program Maersk set up with India’s Cochin Shipyard in early 2025. French liner CMA CGM has already reflagged four box ships to the Indian registry and <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/cma-cgm-signs-350-million-indian-shipbuilding-order-for-six-box-ships-6097779">signed a firm shipbuilding contract with Cochin Shipyard</a> for six feeder vessels to be delivered between 2029 and 2031. <h3>Government woos carriers </h3>The Indian government has been wooing global shipping and logistics conglomerates to invest beyond port-to-port shipping operations in the country through liberalized policy and tax frameworks. “India’s renewed focus on shipbuilding/recycling, which is encouraging to note, is prompting the container lines to consider building and/or registering ships in India,” Sunil Vaswani, executive director of the Container Shipping Lines Association (India), told the Journal of Commerce. “India’s emergence as an alternative marketplace is indeed a welcome step for the industry.” That diversification, while being portrayed as a new strategic approach, signals other regulatory pressures, industry sources believe. <a href="https://nam11.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.joc.com%2Farticle%2Findia-regulators-seek-vsa-trade-off-for-local-carriers-and-alliances-5742524&amp;data=05%7C02%7Civan.klos%40spglobal.com%7C5df43bbc6f5c44a193b008de162d46ca%7C8f3e36ea80394b4081a77dc0599e8645%7C1%7C0%7C638972580902059458%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=mIynqQGNqtwhesUdqzkayedKpyrUCclY6QLpr7jL8ZY%3D&amp;reserved=0">India’s competition authority recently noted</a> that any further immunity from antitrust laws for vessel-sharing agreements (VSAs) would be subject to carrier groupings allocating 5% of the total declared space to both Indian-flagged vessels and local non-vessel-operating common carrier. “It’s apparent that the inducements alone, though significant, would not have brought foreign fleet owners flocking to register their ships in India,” said a Mumbai-based industry observer who did not want to be identified. Contact Bency Mathew at <a href="mailto:bencyvmathew@gmail.com">bencyvmathew@gmail.com</a>. </div>

Ocean carrier heavyweights are increasingly betting on India as an alternative maritime hub as they face ongoing supply chain challenges linked to geopolitical tensions. Maersk has now diversified its business interests in India by reflagging two of its short-haul container ships to the local registry — the 1,810-TEU Maersk Vilnius and the 1,740-TEU Maersk Vigo, both built in 2010. They were previously registered in Singapore. “India is a critical growth market for Maersk, driven by robust economic fundamentals, expanding container trade and significant policy reforms in the maritime sector,” a company spokesperson told the Journal of Commerce. “As part of our continued commitment to strengthening our presence in India, we have registered two of our vessels under the Indian flag.” The Maersk spokesperson also said the carrier will continue to use the flags of Denmark, Singapore and Hong Kong for its fleets. The two reflagged vessels are said to be part of Maersk’s regional networks covering Asian trades. That reflagging move builds on a shipbuilding/repair partnership program Maersk set up with India’s Cochin Shipyard in early 2025. French liner CMA CGM has already reflagged four box ships to the Indian registry and signed a firm shipbuilding contract with Cochin Shipyard for six feeder vessels to be delivered between 2029 and 2031. Government woos carriers The Indian government has been wooing global shipping and logistics conglomerates to invest beyond port-to-port shipping operations in the country through liberalized policy and tax frameworks. “India’s renewed focus on shipbuilding/recycling, which is encouraging to note, is prompting the container lines to consider building and/or registering ships in India,” Sunil Vaswani, executive director of the Container Shipping Lines Association (India), told the Journal of Commerce. “India’s emergence as an alternative marketplace is indeed a welcome step for the industry.” That diversification, while being portrayed as a new strategic approach, signals other regulatory pressures, industry sources believe. India’s competition authority recently noted that any further immunity from antitrust laws for vessel-sharing agreements (VSAs) would be subject to carrier groupings allocating 5% of the total declared space to both Indian-flagged vessels and local non-vessel-operating common carrier. “It’s apparent that the inducements alone, though significant, would not have brought foreign fleet owners flocking to register their ships in India,” said a Mumbai-based industry observer who did not want to be identified. Contact Bency Mathew at bencyvmathew@gmail.com .

Maersk joins CMA CGM in reflagging container ships in India amid antitrust pressure

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">Growth in spot refrigerated (reefer) truck pricing is accelerating, especially for loads originating in Florida and Mexico, amid tougher licensing and immigration enforcement. </div>

Growth in spot refrigerated (reefer) truck pricing is accelerating, especially for loads originating in Florida and Mexico, amid tougher licensing and immigration enforcement.

<div class="phx-topic">An emerging supply-demand imbalance in refrigerated (reefer) trucking is pushing more freight to the spot market and increasing upward pressure on short-term rates as the peak trucking season begins. Dual <a href="https://www.joc.com/article/industry-group-calls-for-tougher-licensing-better-training-amid-trucker-crackdown-6101323">crackdowns on immigration and licensing</a> may be tipping a scale already depressed by low demand, trucking and logistics executives told the Journal of Commerce. Average US reefer truckload spot rates, including fuel surcharges, reached $2.47 per mile in the week of Oct. 19, up 10 cents from the week of Sept. 14 and 12 cents from the same week last year, according to DAT Freight &amp; Analytics. Last year, average reefer truckload rates of $2.35 per mile in mid-October were up approximately 1 cent from September 2024 and down 5 cents from October 2023 levels. <div class="wrapper-narrow"><dynamic-object type="jocchartid" resource-id="d47d3a93-a025-4227-b19e-443d2719ea1e"></dynamic-object></div>Spot reefer rates are rising at a faster pace — and earlier than usual — from produce markets such as South and Central Florida and along the US-Mexico border, said Dean Croke, principal analyst at DAT. Demand may be rising for certain food and grocery shipments ahead of the US Thanksgiving holiday, but tractor and driver supply is shrinking faster. “I suspect what we’re about to see in the refrigerated trucking market is a significant exodus of capacity,” Croke said in an interview Monday. Reefer shipments posted on DAT load boards increased 9% sequentially last week, while trucks posted dropped 6%. “I’m not sure if it’s an exit or a diversion of capacity, or if it’s temporary or permanent, [but] we’re starting to see pockets of capacity tightness,” he added. Those “pockets” do not represent the entire US refrigerated market, however, and they may, or may not, be a precursor of future trends. “Some people will be exuberant and say the market is flipping, but it may be a blip as we head into peak season,” Croke said.Data from Truckstop.com and FTR Transportation Intelligence for the week ending October 24 show a stable spot market that tracked seasonal expectations. Refrigerated spot rates have risen four straight weeks, according to Truckstop.com, but the size of those increases has fallen steadily. ITS Logistics, a Reno, Nevada-based third-party logistics company, has noted a slight drop in truck capacity that it attributes to drivers shunning certain lanes to avoid enforcement. “When you have fewer drivers making those long hauls, it takes capacity out of the market,” said Paul Brashier, vice president of global supply chain. “It’s like an extended Roadcheck week situation,” he said, referring to the annual truck regulatory enforcement blitz organized by the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance. The national event typically sees capacity tighten as truck drivers take time off. <h3>Northbound and down </h3>One of the hot spots is Central and South Florida, always a tough market for backhauls because of the imbalance in southbound consumer shipments and northbound freight. Shippers are having a tougher time finding capacity for refrigerated loads from Lakeland, Florida, the largest refrigerated freight market in Florida, Croke said. Spot reefer load posts in Lakeland jumped 28% from the previous week in the week ending Oct. 19. Average outbound spot reefer rates from Lakeland have risen by 10 cents per mile in recent weeks. In the lane linking Lakeland with Atlanta, for example, the average spot rate rose from $1.58 per mile to $1.67 per mile from September through Oct. 28, according to DAT. Shippers are turning to the spot market as their regular trucking providers come up short on capacity, Croke said. He attributes the growing imbalance to licensing and immigration enforcement at truck weight and agricultural stations along Florida highways. Croke sees similar conditions in the McAllen, Texas, refrigerated market, a major border crossing point for produce from Mexico. Spot reefer loads posted in the McAllen area rose 37% sequentially last week and 42% over the past month, according to DAT. Outbound reefer spot rates from McAllen rose 7 cents last week to $2.03 per mile, 14 cents higher than a year ago. The increase was sharper in some long-haul lanes. As of Monday, the average spot reefer rate from McAllen to Fresno, California, shot up from $1.36 per mile in September to $1.71 per mile in the last seven days. Rates from McAllen to Los Angeles jumped from $1.48 per mile in September to $1.87 per mile in the last three days. Fewer drivers from California are making the long-haul to southern Texas, Croke said, which means fewer drivers available to haul loads back to California from McAllen. “Those drivers are reluctant to run to the border for fear of arrest or just fear of delay,” said Croke. A truck inspection lasting hours can throw off a driver’s delivery schedule, sometimes costing an entire leg of a multi-day trip, he said. “Carriers will say they can’t afford to lose that, and they’ll stay home or drive locally.” Contact William B. Cassidy at <a href="mailto:bill.cassidy@spglobal.com">bill.cassidy@spglobal.com</a>. </div>

An emerging supply-demand imbalance in refrigerated (reefer) trucking is pushing more freight to the spot market and increasing upward pressure on short-term rates as the peak trucking season begins. Dual crackdowns on immigration and licensing may be tipping a scale already depressed by low demand, trucking and logistics executives told the Journal of Commerce. Average US reefer truckload spot rates, including fuel surcharges, reached $2.47 per mile in the week of Oct. 19, up 10 cents from the week of Sept. 14 and 12 cents from the same week last year, according to DAT Freight & Analytics. Last year, average reefer truckload rates of $2.35 per mile in mid-October were up approximately 1 cent from September 2024 and down 5 cents from October 2023 levels. Spot reefer rates are rising at a faster pace — and earlier than usual — from produce markets such as South and Central Florida and along the US-Mexico border, said Dean Croke, principal analyst at DAT. Demand may be rising for certain food and grocery shipments ahead of the US Thanksgiving holiday, but tractor and driver supply is shrinking faster. “I suspect what we’re about to see in the refrigerated trucking market is a significant exodus of capacity,” Croke said in an interview Monday. Reefer shipments posted on DAT load boards increased 9% sequentially last week, while trucks posted dropped 6%. “I’m not sure if it’s an exit or a diversion of capacity, or if it’s temporary or permanent, [but] we’re starting to see pockets of capacity tightness,” he added. Those “pockets” do not represent the entire US refrigerated market, however, and they may, or may not, be a precursor of future trends. “Some people will be exuberant and say the market is flipping, but it may be a blip as we head into peak season,” Croke said. Data from Truckstop.com and FTR Transportation Intelligence for the week ending October 24 show a stable spot market that tracked seasonal expectations. Refrigerated spot rates have risen four straight weeks, according to Truckstop.com, but the size of those increases has fallen steadily. ITS Logistics, a Reno, Nevada-based third-party logistics company, has noted a slight drop in truck capacity that it attributes to drivers shunning certain lanes to avoid enforcement. “When you have fewer drivers making those long hauls, it takes capacity out of the market,” said Paul Brashier, vice president of global supply chain. “It’s like an extended Roadcheck week situation,” he said, referring to the annual truck regulatory enforcement blitz organized by the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance. The national event typically sees capacity tighten as truck drivers take time off. Northbound and down One of the hot spots is Central and South Florida, always a tough market for backhauls because of the imbalance in southbound consumer shipments and northbound freight. Shippers are having a tougher time finding capacity for refrigerated loads from Lakeland, Florida, the largest refrigerated freight market in Florida, Croke said. Spot reefer load posts in Lakeland jumped 28% from the previous week in the week ending Oct. 19. Average outbound spot reefer rates from Lakeland have risen by 10 cents per mile in recent weeks. In the lane linking Lakeland with Atlanta, for example, the average spot rate rose from $1.58 per mile to $1.67 per mile from September through Oct. 28, according to DAT. Shippers are turning to the spot market as their regular trucking providers come up short on capacity, Croke said. He attributes the growing imbalance to licensing and immigration enforcement at truck weight and agricultural stations along Florida highways. Croke sees similar conditions in the McAllen, Texas, refrigerated market, a major border crossing point for produce from Mexico. Spot reefer loads posted in the McAllen area rose 37% sequentially last week and 42% over the past month, according to DAT. Outbound reefer spot rates from McAllen rose 7 cents last week to $2.03 per mile, 14 cents higher than a year ago. The increase was sharper in some long-haul lanes. As of Monday, the average spot reefer rate from McAllen to Fresno, California, shot up from $1.36 per mile in September to $1.71 per mile in the last seven days. Rates from McAllen to Los Angeles jumped from $1.48 per mile in September to $1.87 per mile in the last three days. Fewer drivers from California are making the long-haul to southern Texas, Croke said, which means fewer drivers available to haul loads back to California from McAllen. “Those drivers are reluctant to run to the border for fear of arrest or just fear of delay,” said Croke. A truck inspection lasting hours can throw off a driver’s delivery schedule, sometimes costing an entire leg of a multi-day trip, he said. “Carriers will say they can’t afford to lose that, and they’ll stay home or drive locally.” Contact William B. Cassidy at bill.cassidy@spglobal.com .

Shrinking capacity pushing up US reefer truck rates

<div class="phx-topic abstract-wrapper">US soybean exporters say the Trump administration’s financial bailout of Argentina is “facilitating” that country’s growing threat as a competitor to US growers. </div>

US soybean exporters say the Trump administration’s financial bailout of Argentina is “facilitating” that country’s growing threat as a competitor to US growers.

<div class="phx-topic">US soybean shippers are encouraged that US-China trade talks may reopen access to their largest market, but they say a deal won’t stop increased competition from exporters in Argentina aided by a planned US bailout of the Argentine peso. While most soybeans move via bulk vessels, the approximately 50,000 TEUs of containerized soybeans exported to China annually provide needed backhaul cargo for carriers. China’s tariffs of 34% on US soybeans virtually killed shipments to China so far this year — through September, US containerized soybean exports totaled just 5,134 TEUs, down 89% from the first nine months of 2024, according to PIERS, a Journal of Commerce sister product within S&amp;P Global — but a thaw might be in the works. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who is a soybean farmer, said Sunday he anticipates China will now make “substantial” purchases of US soybeans following the administration’s announcement of a trade truce with Beijing. However, the US and China have yet to work out the details of potential tariffs. Whatever the outcome, agriculture shippers fear US exports will be further threatened by the emergence of Argentina as a competitor in the Chinese market. “China already purchases a lot of soybeans from Argentina,” Mike Steenhoek, executive director of the Soy Transportation Coalition, told the Journal of Commerce Friday. “US exporters say the US is now facilitating Argentina to be a bigger exporter.” Steenhoek was referring to the administration’s plan to bail out Argentina’s currency, along with the September announcement by Argentina President Javier Milei that he was suspending the country’s 26% tax on exports of grains. Because farmers harvest their soybean crops in the fall, the fourth quarter is normally the busiest time of the year for exports. But according to weekly sales data from the US Department of Agriulture Foreign Agriculture Service, the US has sold zero soybeans to China since Sept. 9. Soybean exports from Brazil normally fall off in the fourth quarter, Steenhoek noted, which in past years opened the door for US growers. “The US should be the supplier that steps in now, but not this time,” Steenhoek said. Contact Bill Mongelluzzo at <a href="mailto:bill.mongelluzzo@spglobal.com">bill.mongelluzzo@spglobal.com</a>. Michael Angell, Senior Editor, East Coast ports, contributed to this story. </div>

US soybean shippers are encouraged that US-China trade talks may reopen access to their largest market, but they say a deal won’t stop increased competition from exporters in Argentina aided by a planned US bailout of the Argentine peso. While most soybeans move via bulk vessels, the approximately 50,000 TEUs of containerized soybeans exported to China annually provide needed backhaul cargo for carriers. China’s tariffs of 34% on US soybeans virtually killed shipments to China so far this year — through September, US containerized soybean exports totaled just 5,134 TEUs, down 89% from the first nine months of 2024, according to PIERS, a Journal of Commerce sister product within S&P Global — but a thaw might be in the works. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who is a soybean farmer, said Sunday he anticipates China will now make “substantial” purchases of US soybeans following the administration’s announcement of a trade truce with Beijing. However, the US and China have yet to work out the details of potential tariffs. Whatever the outcome, agriculture shippers fear US exports will be further threatened by the emergence of Argentina as a competitor in the Chinese market. “China already purchases a lot of soybeans from Argentina,” Mike Steenhoek, executive director of the Soy Transportation Coalition, told the Journal of Commerce Friday. “US exporters say the US is now facilitating Argentina to be a bigger exporter.” Steenhoek was referring to the administration’s plan to bail out Argentina’s currency, along with the September announcement by Argentina President Javier Milei that he was suspending the country’s 26% tax on exports of grains. Because farmers harvest their soybean crops in the fall, the fourth quarter is normally the busiest time of the year for exports. But according to weekly sales data from the US Department of Agriulture Foreign Agriculture Service, the US has sold zero soybeans to China since Sept. 9. Soybean exports from Brazil normally fall off in the fourth quarter, Steenhoek noted, which in past years opened the door for US growers. “The US should be the supplier that steps in now, but not this time,” Steenhoek said. Contact Bill Mongelluzzo at bill.mongelluzzo@spglobal.com . Michael Angell, Senior Editor, East Coast ports, contributed to this story.

China trade talks give US soybean exporters hope

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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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