International Housewares Shippers Association

Asia to U.S.A. – Spot Rates Increase

The International Housewares Shippers Association (IHSA) has been closely monitoring freight rates in the Asia to United States market. The carriers have made eight attempts to increase freight rates in this market since May 2015. Every attempt failed until July 2016. The biggest obstacle to the previous attempted increases was simple economics. The amount of capacity in the…

Ocean Freight Update: Ocean Carriers’ Action Indicates Weak Demand

Ocean carriers are entering their busiest shipping phase known as peak season to those familiar with the container shipping industry. It is traditional for ocean carriers to impose a “Peak Season Surcharge” (PSS) on containers shipped from Asia to the United States during this peak period. The PSS is a good tool for shippers to gauge how carriers view future demand in the…

Is Your Company Prepared for SOLAS?

If your company ships ocean containers, you need to prepared for SOLAS. Effective July 1, 2016, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) will be enforcing a new regulation in the Safety of Life at Sea Convention (SOLAS). This new regulation mandates that shippers provide a Verified Gross Mass (VGM) for every container as a condition for loading onto a ship for export. VGM…

IHSA Finalizes Ocean Contract Negotiations

After two months of negotiating with ocean carriers, the International Housewares Shippers Association (IHSA) is pleased to report that contract negotiations have been finalized. IHSA’s 2016-17 ocean carrier program offers rates and services with 11 different ocean carriers capable of providing service to and from every major trade lane in the world. The contract rates are…