Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Empty shipping containers stack up at U.S. port depots

Capacity imbalance could be compounded by west coast port contract fight, Container xChange says.

container xchange Screen Shot 2022-04-28 at 3.02.40 PM.png

Empty shipping containers are piling up in storage depots on the U.S. east and west coasts, causing a glut of capacity even as they are sorely needed overseas in Asia to ship exports back to the U.S., Container xChange said in an analysis.

That trend will present a major challenge in the mid- to long-term range, at the same time that the industry is keeping a wary eye on looming contract negotiations between waterfront labor and port management groups on the U.S. west coast, according to Germany-based Container XChange, a technology firm which tracks container movement trends worldwide.


A tight calendar is ratcheting up pressure on the container sector even more, since the contract governing working conditions between laborers in the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and management with the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) is set to expire on June 30. In addition to providing just nine weeks from today  for a contentious negotiation, that period falls right at the start of the period when retailers begin stocking up inventory for the critical winter peak season.

"We know that the port labor unions are very aggressive negotiators, and the event has historically also resulted in work stoppages in the past. If that happens this year too, it will cause unloading and loading of cargo [to be] practically impossible,” Christian Roeloffs, cofounder and CEO of Container xChange, said in a release.

“I am doubtful whether the negotiations are done within one and a half months because that's effectively the time that we have before the current contract ends at the beginning of July. And it's just doubtful whether the port and terminal unions will find an agreement with the employers by that time. This will of course lead to disruptions at the beginning of the early peak season shipping, a crucial time for the shipping industry, set to have implications on consumer demand fulfillment," Roeloffs said.

Nervous trade groups representing U.S. shippers and retailers have already petitioned the Biden Administration to get engaged in the impending talks, according to recent letters to the White House from the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) and the National Retail Federation (NRF).

In the meantime, shippers and carriers are coping with plunging container prices due to the box glut, marking the latest hit to smooth supply chain operations to land in recent months. "In general, logjams and disruptions lead to increase in container prices, especially in second-hand container prices because more container volume is tied up along the logistic supply chain. However, in the United States, there is a pile-up of empties as those containers cannot be repatriated back to Asia because of several disruptions one after the other in the past 2 years," Roeloffs said.

A solution may not arrive for months, he said. “Once we see depots overflowing (and this is also what we expect in the midterm once disruptions ease up a little bit), container turnaround times becoming faster and shorter again, container fleet utilization (the number of trips that container can take on average within a given year) increasing again, we do believe that container availability on a global scale will become more abundant again."

The Latest

More Stories

person using AI at a laptop

Gartner: GenAI set to impact procurement processes

Progress in generative AI (GenAI) is poised to impact business procurement processes through advancements in three areas—agentic reasoning, multimodality, and AI agents—according to Gartner Inc.

Those functions will redefine how procurement operates and significantly impact the agendas of chief procurement officers (CPOs). And 72% of procurement leaders are already prioritizing the integration of GenAI into their strategies, thus highlighting the recognition of its potential to drive significant improvements in efficiency and effectiveness, Gartner found in a survey conducted in July, 2024, with 258 global respondents.

Keep ReadingShow less

Featured

Report: SMEs hopeful ahead of holiday peak

Report: SMEs hopeful ahead of holiday peak

Businesses are cautiously optimistic as peak holiday shipping season draws near, with many anticipating year-over-year sales increases as they continue to battle challenging supply chain conditions.

That’s according to the DHL 2024 Peak Season Shipping Survey, released today by express shipping service provider DHL Express U.S. The company surveyed small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to gauge their holiday business outlook compared to last year and found that a mix of optimism and “strategic caution” prevail ahead of this year’s peak.

Keep ReadingShow less
retail store tech AI zebra

Retailers plan tech investments to stop theft and loss

Eight in 10 retail associates are concerned about the lack of technology deployed to spot safety threats or criminal activity on the job, according to a report from Zebra Technologies Corp.

That challenge is one of the reasons that fewer shoppers overall are satisfied with their shopping experiences lately, Lincolnshire, Illinois-based Zebra said in its “17th Annual Global Shopper Study.”th Annual Global Shopper Study.” While 85% of shoppers last year were satisfied with both the in-store and online experiences, only 81% in 2024 are satisfied with the in-store experience and just 79% with online shopping.

Keep ReadingShow less
warehouse automation systems

Cimcorp's new CEO sees growth in grocery and tire segments

Logistics automation systems integrator Cimcorp today named company insider Veli-Matti Hakala as its new CEO, saying he will cultivate growth in both the company and its clientele, specifically in the grocery retail and tire plant logistics sectors.

An eight-year veteran of the Georgia company, Hakala will begin his new role on January 1, when the current CEO, Tero Peltomäki, will retire after a long and noteworthy career, continuing as a member of the board of directors, Cimcorp said.

Keep ReadingShow less

Securing the last mile

Although many shoppers will return to physical stores this holiday season, online shopping remains a driving force behind peak-season shipping challenges, especially when it comes to the last mile. Consumers still want fast, free shipping if they can get it—without any delays or disruptions to their holiday deliveries.

One disruptor that gets a lot of headlines this time of year is package theft—committed by so-called “porch pirates.” These are thieves who snatch parcels from front stairs, side porches, and driveways in neighborhoods across the country. The problem adds up to billions of dollars in stolen merchandise each year—not to mention headaches for shippers, parcel delivery companies, and, of course, consumers.

Keep ReadingShow less