Spotlight
Hurricanes roil US trucking market
Spot truckload rates are surging in the US Southeast and rising nationwide in the wake of Hurricane Helene and ahead of Hurricane Milton . Dry-van , refrigerated and flatbed spot rates all rose nationwide in the first week of October , following widespread damage Helene wreaked from Florida to North Carolina , according to DAT Freight & Analytics . The Category 4 hurricane killed more than 230 people and left a trail of destruction across six states , destroying bridges , roads and a section of Interstate 40 . The aftermath is slowing the US freight network , tightening capacity and pushing up short-term pricing , said Dean Croke , principal analyst at DAT . During the first week of October , spot line haul rates in the greater Atlanta freight market rose 7 cents to $ 1.53 per mile despite a 3 % decrease in load voumes from the previous week .
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Ro / ro orderbook hit record high
Investment in new vehicle carriers and roll-on / roll-off ( ro / ro ) tonnage has propelled the order book to record highs , even as global light vehicle production shows signs of slowing , according to analysts . New orders and increases to existing orders from CIDO Shipping , shortsea ro / ro operator CLdN and Wallenius Wilhelmsen have taken the order book to 217 car carriers , totaling 4.7 million deadweight metric tons ( dwt ), a jump of 14.6 % from January ’ s order book , according to data from shipbroker Clarksons . In tonnage terms , the total is equal to 36.2 % of the existing fleet of 13.1 million dwt , a record high . Around 60 % of the ships on order are due for delivery starting in 2026 . The investment in new ro / ro tonnage comes as forecasts show global light vehicles production wobbling due to weaker demand , uncertainty about the outlook for electric vehicles and macroeconomic pressures . contract . Local 375 of the Canadian Union of Public Employees ( CUPE ) said that its members will refuse to work overtime starting Oct . 10 for an indefinite period . “ We ’ re willing to get down to intensive negotiations , but since the employer is dragging their feet , we ’ re turning up the pressure so that they can put forth the energy needed to find a solution ,” CUPE representative Michel Murray said in a statement Oct . 7 . The Maritime Employers Association decried the move as a “ pressure tactic ” and said the inability to fill crews , particularly specialized trades such as crane or equipment operators , would pull down dockworker pay and vessel productivity . Local 375 ’ s latest move follows a three-day strike its members staged early October against two of Montreal ’ s largest marine terminals , Viau and Maisonneuve , knocking out about 40 % of the port ’ s container capacity .
Yellow selling last LTL terminals
The other shoe is dropping in the US less-than-truckload ( LTL ) real estate market as bankrupt LTL provider Yellow prepares to sell its remaining 112 terminals , including some of its largest sites , a move that will release pent-up LTL capacity . About 30 of the facilities could be considered “ port-adjacent ,” potentially providing space for transloading and container storage as well as local LTL pickup and delivery . Yellow began accepting non-binding “ indications of interest ,” on Sept . 24 and plans to complete the sales by January , according to a US bankruptcy court filing . Completed sales will release a significant amount of LTL capacity into a market in which freight demand is modest . LTL capacity has yet to recover to 2022 levels , and that ’ s pushed up LTL pricing .
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Montreal dockworkers refusing overtime
Labor tensions at the Port of Montreal are rising again , with dockworkers saying they will no longer work overtime . It ’ s the latest part of a pressure campaign against management during the protracted negotiations for a new
6 Journal of Commerce | October 21 , 2024 www . joc . com