Spotlight

warder wrote.“ But when trade deal deadlines for most countries were pushed to Aug. 1 and China received a separate extension to Aug. [ 14 ] for negotiations, carriers found themselves with mismatched capacity.”

Soos Jozsef / Shutterstock. com

Air capacity mismatched as frontloading fades

The chaotic trans-Pacific trading environment is testing the ability of air cargo airlines to quickly shift capacity between trade corridors in support of rapid changes in Asian export volume. Following a volume surge in July as US importers built up inventory ahead of the sweeping rollout of tariffs on US trading partners Aug. 7, freighter airlines now face the challenge of right-sizing capacity to match new demand levels. C. H. Robinson wrote in a market update that international air freight markets were experiencing widespread capacity rationalization.“ The fundamental challenge

has been one of timing: With new demand in July, carriers increased capacity, but importers completed inventory building earlier than expected, leaving airlines with excess capacity they must now remove to maintain profitability,” the forwarder noted. C. H. Robinson said Asian carriers were particularly affected as the traditional peak season for electronics and consumer goods shipments to US and European markets has been disrupted by the frontloading cycle, forcing airlines to reassess capacity allocation across their networks.“ Airlines had reduced flights and reallocated aircraft, expecting lower cargo demand after July 9 when higher US reciprocal tariffs were originally scheduled to take effect,” the for-

US rejection won’ t change IMO‘ net-zero’ framework: Bimco

The US’ formal rejection of the International Maritime Organization’ s( IMO) net-zero framework agreement will have little impact on the emissions regulation that, once adopted, will still require compliance from all ships trading internationally, according to shipping association Bimco. The net-zero proposal will be promulgated at the next meeting of the IMO’ s Marine Environment Protection Committee( MEPC) in October, where it is expected to pass with the required two-thirds majority.“ Even when, or if, the US places reservations that the rule will not apply to them, it will, because all ships of non-US-flag trading internationally are bound by their flag [ and ] US-flag ships will also be required to comply if they trade internationally,” Lars Robert Pedersen, deputy secretary-general and director of regulatory affairs at Bimco, told the Journal of Commerce. Only about 80 merchant ships currently trade internationally under the US flag, according to maritime insurers UK P & I Club. Vowing“ to protect the American people and their economic interests,” the White House called on IMO members to reject the agreement and threatened to retaliate against those supporting the proposal.“ Our fellow IMO members should be on notice that we will look for their support against this action and not hesitate to retaliate or explore remedies for our citizens should this endeavor fail,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, Secretary of Energy Chris Wright and Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy said in a joint statement.

Webcasts

Join expert industry leaders in exceptional business-critical conversation with Journal of Commerce webcasts.

72024

Shutterstock. com www. joc. com September 1, 2025 | Journal of Commerce 7