shipping news

When I first started writing about international shipping more than 15 years ago, a rollercoaster was the best metaphor to describe the industry, with its volatile, up-and-down freight rates for [...]

Halted Strikes on Iran Today could have been a day of war escalation. President Trump posted on Truth Social that there was a military attack on Iran scheduled, but he held it off at the request [...]

Oil Prices Outlook Oil has always been a large factor in international shipping costs. The Iran War, with the closure of the Straight of Hormuz, effectively cut off shipping access through the [...]

I was curious what news and blog sources artificial intelligence (AI) would rank as the best resources for importers and exporters, so I went to the three biggest AI chatbots – ChatGPT, Microsoft [...]

On Friday, President Trump put pressure on the European Union (EU). With trade deal discussions apparently going nowhere, he threatened a 50% tariff on EU goods starting June 1st. It sparked [...]

In the wake of surging shipping demand from China to the U.S., Chinese ports are experiencing congestion. That should push transpacific freight rates, which are already climbing fast, to go even [...]

In today's post we round up three international shipping news stories affecting U.S. importers and exporters... The ILA ratifies its new contract, the U.S. Trade Representative proposes big fees [...]

41 Days... Tuesday's blog had a positive tone regarding the situation with the International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) at East and Gulf Coast ports. The union's praise for President Trump [...]

Canada's West Coast ports are going to reopen. Not because negotiations between dockworkers and employers reached resolution or made progress. In fact, part of why they're reopening is because [...]

We've gone 4 days with British Columbian ports shut down, and there is no movement towards reopening them. In fact, multiple news outlets use the word "silence" when describing the situation and [...]

Now that most countries are easing COVID-19 restrictions, ocean shipping processes might improve. However, as of the first half of 2022, you also have to consider the impacts of the [...]

This will be the last blog I post in 2021, so I can spend the holidays with family. What better time to do a look back at the year's top international shipping news stories? This year, stories [...]

IMO 2020 went into effect on January 1st, requiring sea vessels, including container ships, to abide by a 0.5% sulfur cap on fuel or use scrubbers (systems that clean fuel in engines) in order to [...]

As 2019 draws to a close, a ton of things are happening in international shipping. You would think with the last three blogs getting into IMO 2020, Incoterm changes with Incoterms 2020, and the [...]

In case you missed the big news this weekend, a drone attack hit two oil facilities in Saudi Arabia on Saturday (September 14th, 2019). Here's a brief summary from an Aljazeera news [...]

With President Trump's announcement last week that he's raising tariffs again on Chinese goods, we're seeking insight into trade negotiations between the countries. Is there anything coming out [...]

There are a number of stories about ocean freight carriers making headlines right now. So let's round up the top ones and put them all in one blog.

Read Universal Cargo's newest blog [...]

A couple years ago in San Francisco, the world's major ocean freight carriers were holding a biannual Box Club meeting when the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) burst in on them with a raiding [...]

This is it! Universal Cargo's final blog of 2018!

It's become a tradition over the last couple years to make the last blog of the year a look back on the year's top 10 international [...]

When it comes to international shipping in regards to the U.S. and China, trade war has been dominating the news. But as this week draws to a close, two huge, potentially deadly storms are [...]