Box lines to suspend Asia-Europe sailings
Lines have blanked sailings during the traditionally quiet period just after the western New Year when carriers like to take advantage of slack conditions to drydock vessels or carry out repairs.
The Grand Alliance of Hapag-Lloyd, NYK, OOCL, APL, MOL and Hyundai Merchant Marine intends to void seven sailings from Asia to Europe, starting from January 9, when the 8100 teu MOL Courage, which had been due to depart Tokyo on the same date, will not now sail.
Skipped sailings will continue through to February 15 with the 5700 teu OOCL Chicago missing its planned departure.
Maersk Line, meanwhile, has advised customers that ships in its AE1 service will slow down further on the return leg in order to reduce bunker costs. The total transit time from north Europe to Japan will be
unchanged, but the speed will be evened out, lengthening the transit time to Singapore and Colombo.
The change will be effective from the end of 2012 when the 8400 teu Maersk Stepnica leaves Bremerhaven. In the Pacific, the Grand Alliance has cancelled a couple of sailings of the 6300 teu NYK Apollo within the Central China Express.
Please contact your Account Manager for further details.
Source: Lloyds List
 Â
Global reefer box demand slows
A downturn in the demand for reefer containers second half of 2012 has been seen, with production in the third quarter well down on the first two quarters of the year.
Daily leasing rates also softening and at a time when the peak reefer shipping season in the south-north trades is about to begin and the opposite pricing trends were to be expected.
The past quarter has witnessed considerable uncertainty in the sector as ocean carriers have made it clear that their current reefer services are not viable without significant freight rate increases.
Maersk has already indicated that it would cut all purchases of new reefer equipment in 2013 and lessors have scaled back their purchasing plans in recent weeks as initial cash investment returns have been eroded. Moreover, there are concerns that the peak season this year will not be as strong, given the global economic climate and especially the financial crises in the eurozone.
Source: Lloyds List
Is pricing the solution to off-peak container movements?
Operational difficulties must be examined before more costs are introduced along the supply chain, says Freight & Trade Alliance founder Paul Zalai in his weekly opinion spot. Top of Form
We hear plenty about the need to move more freight during off-peak periods. Sure it makes sense for a whole range of reasons but let’s examine some of the operational difficulties before we introduce more costs along the supply chain.
Stevedores complete container receipt and delivery (R&D) on a 24X7 basis to maximise efficient use of equipment and to minimise terminal congestion. In contrast, many importers and exporters only work regular business hours due to various issues including labour issues, council restrictions for use of heavy vehicles etc. Therefore trucking companies have to do more than transport the container, they need to act as a logistics intermediary. In context of imports, they are increasingly required to use “staging†solutions by taking an off-peak vehicle booking system (VBS) slot from the terminal, moving the container to a holding yard and making a next day delivery to the importer.
Further restricting the efficient use of transport and “two-way†running is the fact that most empty container parks only work on a Monday to Friday basis (excluding public holidays) and limited hours. This increases the requirement for staging in the return of the empty containers with delays risking a resultant penalty in the form of shipping line imposed detention fees.
As suggested in recent government reports, a part of the solution to all of this is to introduce price incentives. This approach is not too dis-similar to what the previous NSW Government suggested in the form of a “peak period pricing†program where stevedore slots would be available at different rates for peak, shoulder and off-peak periods.
In some ways this approach is not unreasonable. If the prices were set on a well calculated basis, those transport operators that stage container movements (absorbing associated costs or passing it on to their client) would end up being on a level playing field with those transport operators that obtain a peak slot and make a direct delivery to the importer.
The counter argument is that we do not need a pricing regime to generate an even flow of R&D as the stevedores control how many slots that they put in the VBS against each hourly zone. Transport operators scramble for the peak slots and then pick up whatever is available in the shoulder and off-peak periods. As required, they then stage the container movements. This model is far from ideal but it seems to work, especially for larger volume carriers and those that have their base in close proximity to the port and can more easily deal with the staging process.
Source: Lloyds List (Paul Zalai )
Hanjin Shipping adds WA link
Hanjin Shipping is adding to its Australian service offering by joining K Line’s Fremantle-Singapore WASCO shuttle as a slot-charterer from mid January.
The South Korean carrier will also establish agency representation in Fremantle as part of a broadening of its network in this region.
Hanjin already operates two services to eastern/southern Australia, the North Asia-focused CKA (with partners Sinolines, STX Pan Ocean and Yang Ming) and South-East Asia’s AUS as part of the ASA consortium (with vessel operators ANL, OOCL and RCL).
K Line employs two 1700 teu ships, Swan River Bridge and Margaret River Bridge and also charters slots on the service to RCL and OOCL. Hanjin and K Line are both members of the global CGYH alliance, with Cosco and Yang Ming.
The new service will get underway with a January 18, 2013 sailing from Singapore.
Source: Lloyds List
Ultra-large containerships test ports’ capabilities
Ports in Europe and Asia are being put to the test as the first of a new generation of containerships enters service, but initial feedback is positive.
With a nominal capacity in excess of 16,000 teu, a 53.6 metre beamship, a 16 metre draft and a length of 396 metres, the CMA CGM Marco Polo is the first of its kind in the world. And while it is only slightly larger than the 15,550 teu Maersk ships that have been in service for several years, it will be calling at some different ports from the Maersk vessels.
One of those ports is Southampton, where CMA CGM Marco Polo successfully berthed recently, despite a relatively narrow approach to its DP World Southampton terminal. The 10,700 teu APL Barcelona, on the berth when CMA CGM Marco Polo arrived, was also able to pass the French line’s ship on departure without mishap.
The ship will also be calling at Hamburg, Bremerhaven, Rotterdam, Zeebrugge and Le Havre in northern Europe, as well as in Malta, the Middle East and Asia.
Source: Lloyds List
Box lines step up war on unsafe cargo practices
Container lines are stepping up efforts to stamp out cargo-related accidents with a detailed account of the sort of unsafe practices by some of their customers that risk both lives and ship damage or loss. Poor or incorrect packing accounts for half of all accidents involving containerised cargo, much of it likely to have been loaded in a European port.
Analysis by a group of leading container lines that formed the Cargo
Incident Notification System (CINS) 18 months ago shows that leakage is one of the biggest problems faced by the container shipping industry and that overweight containers are not directly responsible for many accidents.
Leaks topped the type of incident reported by carriers, followed by misdeclarations. A quarter of all cargoes that subsequently leaked were loaded in Europe, followed by 23% in the Asia-Pacific region and 9% in Africa.
China accounted for 16% of the load ports and the US represented 5%.
Europe accounted for 18% of the discharge ports, followed by the Asia- Pacific region with 18%.
In terms of substance, corrosive materials accounted for 28% of incidents, followed by inert or solid materials, which were involved in 17% and flammable liquids with 14%.
The survey covered almost 500 incidents recorded over a period of just over a year. This is the first time the industry has had such detailed data covering cargo-related accidents.
CINS members account for just over half the world’s containership fleet. The body was set up in mid-2011 by Mediterranean Shipping Co, Maersk Line, CMA CGM, Hapag-Lloyd and Evergreen, along with the TT Club and International Group of P&I Clubs.
Founder lines have now been joined by seven more, including CSAV, Zim and Hamburg Sd.
Source: Lloyds List
New NZ Customs import/export and biosecurity fees
Proposed fee hikes for Customs transaction fees and the bio-security levy have been given the green light by New Zealand’s cabinet. New notification measures will also be imposed on vessels. Â
Although fee rises have been agreed, the date for their introduction has not yet been revealed.
Customs and the Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI) will charge for the processing of cargo reports and import and export clearances.
Fee increases are being made to recover the cargo industry’s share of costs arising from implementing the first stage (Tranche 1) of the Joint Border Management System (JBMS).
The JBMS will be a set of integrated information technology products that Customs and MPI will use to jointly manage risk at the border. It will also provide for a single channel for local and international traders and carriers to comply with NZ’s border requirements.
Further paperwork will be required from 2013. A ‘Consolidation Inward Cargo Report’ is a new requirement for details of sea freight consolidation/FAK/LCL shipments to be lodged 48 hours prior to a vessel’s arrival.
Customs and bio-security fee increases will include following:
- MPI Biosecurity
- Import entry transaction fee (IETF)
- Inward cargo transaction fee (air)
- Inward cargo transaction fee (sea)
- Export entry transaction fee (members of the secure export scheme)
- Export entry transaction fee (non-secure export scheme) members
- Outward cargo transaction fee (air)
- Outward cargo transaction fee (sea)
Â
U.S. Port Congestion/Strike Update
Â
Â
As you are probably well aware, the ILA and USMX have been negotiating off and on since March 2012 for a six-year contract covering ILA members
handling cargo in the US east & gulf coast ports. The contract was due to expire on 29th December, 2012.
Â
We are pleased to advise that negotiations between the International
Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) and the U.S. Maritime Alliance (USMX)
resulted in the agreement between the parties to an additional extension to
the labour contract of 30 days, through midnight, 28 January 2013.
Although they are reported to have made progress on one of the most
contentious issues ~ royalty payments ~ no further details of the negotiations are available at this time.
