The month-long U.S.-Israeli military campaign against Iran has triggered the most severe disruption to global maritime trade in modern history. Three overlapping crises — the near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a renewed Houthi threat in the Red Sea, and a historic oil price spike — are converging to reshape the economics and logistics of international shipping.
Shippers are happy about the impending launch of three new initiatives. These are in the wake of an investigation by the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) into ocean carriers. The three new initiatives are the International Ocean Shipping Supply Chain Program, the reintroduction of the Rapid Response Team, and the designation of an FMC Compliance Officer. Click to Read: FMC launches new initiative...
East Coast ports are starting to make the news—thanks to an overflow from the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach to the west, as carriers deployed smaller ships during the peak season. As of March 18, there were 63 container ships waiting in queue at East and Gulf Coast ports. And unfortunately, things are expected to get worse. Capacity on services from Asia-East is expected to jump 40% from las...