Commentary

Shippers have run inventory stocks down so low that their demands for on-time performance by their carriers are at an extreme high. Any disruption could lead to a dreaded stock-out.

Supply chain consultant and blogger Jim Tompkins is increasingly bullish about the prospects for economic recovery, despite the bad news of the first quarter.

I met this morning with Tom Kim, the Hong Kong-based transport analyst for Goldman Sachs, and learned more about his upbeat assessment of container shipping companies.

The swine flu outbreak in Mexico is rattling supply chains across the globe, Adrian Gonzalez writes on ARC Advisory Group's Logistics Viewpoints blog.

Environmental issues have become top priority at ports.

For most shippers, the transportation landscape is a lot like the landscape outside an airplane window — it may change in the details, but rarely enough to notice.

The Trans-Pacific Maritime crowd was in a black mood, convening in early March at what may end up being the bleakest point of the recession.

Providers of wood and plastic pallets are in a bitter argument over which kinds of pallets are best.

The Containerization and Intermodal Institute's Connie Award luncheon, held annually in early December, invariably draws capacity attendance. This year, in addition to its Dec.

It's not just states that are getting funds for "shovel-ready" infrastructure projects as part of the federal stimulus package.

As noted in yesterday's blog post on environmentally conscious wine shipping, container ships can offer a relatively carbon-friendly means of moving goods around the planet.

If you plan on celebrating Earth Day with a bottle of wine, you might want to pay as much attention to its carbon footprint as its taste.

Could a new shortage of containers for U.S. exports be emerging? One steamship executive thinks so.

Several publications recently published stories suggesting the government, in seeking to save the U.S.

A new concept is taking shape that would protect freight interests within the highway trust fund.

When Congress heard testimony last month on the environment and climate change, the hearing was before a panel of the House Ways and Means Committee that deals with taxation and trade.

As many commentators have observed about the piracy crisis off the Horn of Africa, the problem starts on land and needs to be solved there.

Researching a column this week on the next highway bill, I called two trucking companies and a major port to ask them what, in their experience, are the worst road bottlenecks they confront.

President Obama released plans today for a national high speed passenger rail network that could have major implications for freight railroads and supply chains.

Implementing 10+2 may be a costly hassle for many importers, but for many it will reveal data about their supply chains that until now had been beyond their reach.

How should governments and shipping lines deal with Somali pirates?

The businesses of trade and transportation have always been a balancing act, to a large extent, built on numbers.

Q: I work for a freight payment/auditing firm, and I have a question regarding time limits for filing overcharge claims and whether a carrier’s rules tariff can

After listening to speakers at last month’s Trans-Pacific Maritime Conference, reading industry-related publications and viewing various television reports, it is hard for me to find anything re

A conceptually convenient way of depicting liner shipping’s recent history is as a series of technological breakthroughs or “revolutions.” First was the container ship, which revolut

Interesting story from Jake Tapper of ABC News on the man the USS Bainbridge was named for: Commodore William Bainbridge, one o

Disputes over fuel surcharge revenue were a major point of contention between shippers and carriers of all modes and types last year during the big run up in fuel and oil prices.

The International Longshoremen's Association is doing what a lot of businesses and households are doing -- looking for ways to cut costs.

With container volumes still way down from last year and coinciding with a glut in new capacity, good news is scarce in container shipping these day

The pirate attack on the Maersk Alabama has spawned questions about why a Maersk ship is flying the U.S. flag.

Trucking operator Schneider National — one of the largest truckload and intermodal carriers in the United States — released its own 38-page “state of the industry” report, with

Here's a blog by one truck driver decidedly in favor of a crossborder trucking program with Mexico: mexicotrucker.com

What was the deadliest maritime disaster in U.S. history?

President Obama’s strategy to combat the recession courts disaster.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood gave an impressive performance last month when he spoke at the spring conference of the American Association of Port Authorities, but that only proved the freight t

From Detroit to Beijing, electric power is getting a lot of attention these days as an alternative to fuels derived from petroleum, natural gas or biomass.

Norton Lilly International has for years hosted a popular Christmas party for customers and friends at the New York Yacht Club.

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines marks its 125th anniversary this year, and MOL President Akimitsuu Ashida used the occasion to provide some historical perspective on the current economic downturn.

The lean manufacturing model pioneered by Toyota may be far too fat for today’s recession-wracked companies.