IHSA Shippers Association

The Asia to U.S. market is experiencing a heavy surge in demand. The surge has caused freight rates to increase substantially over the last month.  This has been costly for shippers that rely on the spot market to move their cargo. Shippers can expect spot rates to continually increase as long as demand outpaces available capacity. The strong market condition has caught many…

Service contracts covering containers moving between Asia and the United States have been finalized. It was initially thought that the new service contract rates would remain unchanged or receive slight decreases in some cases. The steady increase in container volume from Asia during the first quarter of 2024 has allowed the carriers to secure modest price increases for the…

The ship owner is denying responsibility for the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore on March 26. Lawyers petitioned U.S. district courts of Maryland citing why the ship owner was not at fault. While the blame game plays out in court, U.S. regulators are expecting a slew of disputes over excess fees being charged to shippers unable to utilize the…

The threat of a potential strike at U.S. ports has traditionally been centered around West Coast ports. That is no longer the case. The International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA), which represents East and Gulf Coast ports, is warning of a potential strike unless key issues can be resolved. Wages and automation appear to be the key issues that need to be resolved to avert a…

The ocean shipping market continues to be very unstable as it has been since the beginning of the pandemic. In a short three-year period, shippers have been exposed to record high-rate levels, record low-rate levels, severe space limitations and fractured supply chains. The instability in the Red Sea is the latest hurdle that shippers must now overcome. The majority of…

Carriers are facing many uncertainties as we enter 2024. Unstable freight rates caused by vessel overcapacity will be a major topic during the upcoming contract negotiation period. Experts are predicting a four-month window for most Asia to U.S. contract negotiations to be finalized starting January 1 and ending April 30. Unfortunately for the carriers, they don’t have a…

As 2023 draws to an end, there is a lot of uncertainty on whether the 2024 Asia-to-U.S. market will be profitable or disastrous for the carriers. Unfortunately for the carriers, early warning signs indicate that the latter will prevail. The biggest issue carriers face is overcapacity. Until that issue is resolved, the carriers will continue to burn through cash. The carriers…

Over the last few years, shippers have been slowly but steadily shifting imports away from West Coast ports to East Coast ports. There are now indicators showing that the pendulum is shifting and shippers are beginning to return to West Coast ports. There were plenty of reasons for shippers to make the shift away from West Coast ports. For starters, the lack of a contract…

There are clear indications that the carriers are worried about the strength of the Asia-to-U.S. market. Rates are on a downward trajectory and services are being suspended. These are telltale signs that the demand is not close to rebounding. The carriers have canceled hundreds of sailings since the beginning of July in the Asia-to-U.S. market. However, they have shown…