Posted by Carrie Brown on Thu, Aug 19, 2010 @ 05:03 PM
Freight shipping volume has been picking up in 2010 and while that is great news for the world economy it has caused an unexpected shortage of containers. According to the July cover article in American Shipper, this shortage in shipping containers is being sited as one of the main causes for the rise in freight rates and has led to difficulty in moving product to buyers. Many shippers have complained about signing contacts with shipping lines only to have rates rise the following week or to be denied space completely. The average price for a 20ft shipping container has grown from about $2,000 to $2,700.
One of the major reasons for the container shortage was the drop in production of new shipping containers in 2008 and 2009. From 2004 through 2008, TEU supply grew by an average of 8% per year. Once the world recession hit, trade dropped dramatically and so did demand for shipping containers. There was a 95% reduction in shipping container production in 2008 and almost no containers were built in 2009. In response to the drop in demand many of the factories that build the containers, mostly based in China, were forced to shut down. Now with the increased demand for there is a reduced capacity for factories to produce new containers. Some estimate that it will be until 2011 before production will be able to catch up with demand.
While this shortage is bad for manufactures and ultimately consumers, container-leasing companies are appearing to benefit in the short run from this problem. Stocks of publicly traded container-leasing companies have reached 52-week highs this spring and summer. Additionally many leasing companies are taking the opportunity to increase their share of containers. Historically, liner carriers have owned about 55% of the world shipping containers with leasing companies owning the remained 45%. However, recently leasing companies have been responsible for 65-70% of the new container purchases. Leasing companies are also purchasing containers from the shipping lines who are in need of building up there cash reserve.
This shortage in shipping containers due to worldwide demand is a very good sigh of economic expansion however many shipper are hoping that container product will soon catch up to demand.
Source: Boxed-Out, American Shipper
Posted by Carrie Brown on Wed, Jul 28, 2010 @ 02:01 PM
Worried about the environmental impact of your ocean shipping containers? An article in the June 2010 issue of America Shipper details a variety of companies that are taking on the challenge of finding ways to make ocean cargo shipping containers more eco-friendly without too much impact on shipping container cost. The international cargo shipping business lives of thin profit margins and cost is a major factor for containers. Methods that being explored for the 20' and 40' containers include changing the wood used in the container floors, changing to a water-based exterior paints and switching to high tensile steel in box construction.
Shipping containers have traditionally used all wood flooring. In many cases this wood is harvested illegally in Asia. A reduction in illegal harvesting has resulted in greater demand and limited availability. Since 2007, IICL's Flooring Working Group has been exploring different materials to use for the floor of the shipping containers that would not have as negative an impact as the wood. After a variety of tests with various materials the group found that a mixture of wood and steel was a good compromise. These new boxes are currently being tested and the IICL plans to review the results from the test in October. Initial results are looking positive. Other groups including CMA CGM have been purchasing containers with bamboo flooring.
The solvent based paint used on most shipping containers is another factor that has a negative impact on the environment due to its adverse effects on the earth's ozone layer. The challenge here is that most water-based paints require temperature and humidity controls for drying. Container manufacturing is done mainly in China and manufactures there rely on the quick-drying heavy solvent-based paints which can dry within 24 hours.
Triton Container International together with Valspar have been working on developing low solvent, non-zinc, water-based paint that can be used for ocean containers. Additionally, Triton has also began testing 40 HQ containers made from high tensile steel. These containers are 11 percent lighter than comparable steel containers in the market. Having lighter boxes will help to reduce the amount of fuel needed during transport.
Whether these new boxes take off or not depends largely on the container purchasers. However demand from shippers for more eco-friendly shipping containers could have a big impact. You can check out more about greener shipping containers and shipping practices on the The Green Logistician.
Source: Greener Boxes, American Shipper
Posted by Carrie Brown on Wed, Jul 21, 2010 @ 03:43 PM
Global Port tracker is predicting a 16% year-to-year rise in shipping container imports to the 10 busiest ports in the US. This comes after a 20% and 22% increase in year over year growth seen in May and June respectivly. Positive growth has been seen in each month since December 2009, which marked the end of a 28-month streak of declines.
However, this positive trend isn't expected to continue through fall. “The latest economic indicators are starting to look bleak, including consumer confidence, industrial production and employment numbers,” said Ben Hackett, founder of Hackett Associates, which produces the Global Port Tracker. “Sales will be slower in July and August; that much is certain. Inventories will rise, resulting in some sharp seasonal volume reductions.”
This table shows the Container Imports to the 10 busiest ports in the US for May 2010 and predictions for July through November. October, which is usually a high-volume month of the year as retailers stock up for the upcoming holidays, is only predicted to show a 3% increase from 2009 and November only a 4% increase.
|
Month
|
Container Imports (TEUs)
|
% YOY Increase
|
May-10
|
1.25 Million |
20% |
| Jun-10 |
1.24 Million |
22% |
| Jul-10 |
1.29 Million |
16% |
| Aug-10 |
1.26 Million |
9% |
Sep-10
|
1.29 Million |
13% |
| Oct-10 |
1.24 Million |
4% |
| Nov-10 |
1.13 Million |
3% |
Global Port Tracker data covers the ports of Long Angeles/Long Beach, Oakland, Seattle and Tacoma on the West Coast; New York/New Jersey, Hampton Roads, Charleston and Savannah on the East Coast, and Houston on the Gulf Coast.
Source: Hellenic Shipping News
Posted by Mark McAlister on Fri, Jul 09, 2010 @ 01:21 PM
Container volume moving through West Coast ports increased 14 percent in the first five months of the year. Growth was relatively balanced between imports and exports and across the regional gateways Statistics published on the Web site of the Pacific Maritime Association also showed that, except for a slight dip in February, container volume increased steadily from month to month.
The figures for the ports of Seattle, Tacoma, Portland, Oakland, Los Angeles and Long Beach are a good barometer of the U.S. container trade because West Coast ports account for roughly 50 percent of the nation's container trade.
Containerized imports increased 14 percent during the first five months of the year, with April and May showing the largest increase in loaded inbound containers.
Exports were up 13 percent, with March being the busiest month of the year so far. Exports normally enter a seasonal lull in the summer months but rebound strongly in the fall along with the agricultural harvest.
Los Angeles-Long Beach led the coast with a 15 percent increase in total container volume. The Seattle-Tacoma gateway was up 13 percent.
Container volume through Oakland increased 9 percent through May. Unlike the Pacific Northwest and Southern California gateways, exports make up a larger percentage of Oakland's volume than imports. Since U.S. exports last year did not drop as steeply as imports, Oakland's total volume did not drop as much as the rest of the coast, and therefore its rebound this year was not as dramatic as in the other gateways.
Portland was the only gateway to record a drop in container volume. Portland's container volume declined 17 percent compared to the first five months of 2009.
With the economy sending out mixed signals, ports anticipate slower growth in the second half of the year. Some industry analysts, however, continue to project double-digit growth for the year.
The shortage of vessel space appears to be easing as carriers have brought back most of the services they suspended during the winter months. Container availability, however, is still tight, especially in Asia.
Retailers are preparing for a healthy peak shipping season and exporters anticipate strong sales to Asia as the dollar remains weak against some of the currencies there.
Source: Hellenic Shipping News
Posted by David Ige on Wed, Jul 07, 2010 @ 03:53 PM
Key Points:
- Vietnam’s economy has experienced rapid growth since the 1986 economic reforms and growth in international exports to Europe and the United States has accelerated in the past 5 years.
- Exports and imports have grown multi-fold and while there is a trade deficit, this gap is expected to narrow as export industries continue to grow.
- Containerized volumes have grown every year by almost 20%. However port and infrastructure improvements will need to continue to keep up with the growth trend.
- 24 of Vietnam’s 126 ports handle ocean cargo shipping however the country currently lacks deep water port facilities and can currently only handle small feeder ships. Development of deep-water ports are planned and should lead to large improvements in international cargo shipping activity.
- Vietnam’s logistic industry is still being developed and the country currently lacks in key infrastructure including warehousing and depot facilities to match with demand. Logistic costs can be a significant contributor to the high cost of doing business in Vietnam. Improvements over the past 10 years have brought down these costs significantly and these should continue to drop as Vietnam continues to invest in new infrastructure and technology to meet international shipping standards.
- Various companies (including companies in China) are now producing their commodities in Vietnam...the main question is can Vietnam handle the growing exports?
Ocean and Air Port Information:
Ho Chi Mihn city serves as the key port for both ocean and air imports and exports. More than 70% of Vietnam’s transport containers pass through this port. Due to recent growth, congestion has become and will continue to be a problem as container volume growth exceeds port capacity expansion plans.
Alternate ports near Ho Chi Mihn are being developed as well as new international ports at Van Phong Bay (near Nha Trang) and Cai Lan in Quang Ninh providence.
Three international airports serving Hanoi, Danang and Ho Chi Mihn City handle international air cargo shipping. To meet the increased demand in passenger and freight traffic, the government has plans to develop an additional 3 international airports by 2015.
Key Products:
- Major exporter of seafood, rubber, rice and coffee
- Agricultural and aqua-products sector contributes to 30% of GDP
In Summary:
Vietnam has good potential to develop into a major air and ocean cargo shipping hub in Asia. As improvements are made to the ports, infrastructure and the logistics industry opportunities for shipping to and from Vietnam will continue to expand.