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News

Imports Still Rising as West Coast Ports Work on Backlog

National Retail Federation

Import cargo volume at the nation’s major retail container ports is expected to rise an unusually high 16.9 percent this month over the same time last year as West Coast ports begin to dig out from a backlog of cargo that built up during just-concluded contract negotiations with dockworkers, according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report released today by the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates.

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Shipping Logistics Picture

Port of Oakland logjam clearing up, containers moving but there’s still more to do

American Journal of Transportation

Efforts to eliminate a cargo backlog at the Port of Oakland are meeting with success. The Port said today gains in container movement are visible from ship to shore. The signs include:

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Highway

February Freight Volume Falls 37% From a Year Ago

TruckingInfo.com

February saw freight volume drop 37% year-over-year and spot market freight availability decline for the second consecutive month — yet rates were up year over year, according to the latest DAT North American Freight Index.

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U.S. Unemployment Situation – February 2015

Bureau of Labor Statistics

Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 295,000 in February, and the unemployment rate edged down to 5.5 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
reported today. Job gains occurred in food services and drinking places, professional and business services, construction, health care, and in transportation and warehousing. Employment in mining was down over the month.

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Freight Forwarding Shipping Carrier and Containers

L.A./Long Beach port heads: Backlog will take 3 months to clear

Cargo Business Newswire

The top officials at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach said that it would take three months to clear the thousands of containers left stranded on nearly two dozen ships — the product of epic congestion exacerbated by contentious labor talks between dockworkers and management.

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Shipping Logistics Picture

Post-Lunar New Year may Mean Higher Transpacific Ocean Cargo Rates

Logistics Management

Expected post-Lunar New Year cargo growth will accelerate equipment, cargo handling and other costs going forward.

While the full impact on ocean carrier deployments to U.S. West Coat ports has yet to be measured, major players comprising the Transpacific Stabilization Agreement (TSA) are standing firm on raising rates.

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February 2015 Manufacturing ISM Report on Business

Institute for Supply Management

Economic activity in the manufacturing sector expanded in February for the 26th consecutive month, and the overall economy grew for the 69th consecutive month, say the nation’s supply executives in the latest Manufacturing ISM® Report On Business®.

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Blue Industry News Icon

Possible DHS Shutdown: CBP Plans To Respond

Should Congress fail to pass a bill to fund the Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection will have to furlough approximately 6,000 employees at midnight, February 27.

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John Carr MIQ President and CEO

JOC Annual Review & Outlook 2015 – input from John Carr

JOC Annual Review & Outlook 2015  with input from John Carr, MIQ President and CEO.JOC Logo

The industry is working on solutions to the port congestion issue, from gray chassis to port enhancements. Still, smart retailers should look strategically at their supply chains, both to gain added value and avoid the pitfalls experienced in 2014.

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MIQ Logistics Air Freight Plane

Getting West Coast ports back to full capacity will require patience and time

Logistics Management

With the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) and the International Longshore & Warehouse Union (ILWU) recently agreeing to a tentative agreement on a new five-year contract last weekend covering about 20,000 port employees at 29 West Coast ports following roughly nine months of stops and starts and acrimonious negotiations, the focus for all port and supply chain stakeholders is firmly on the future.

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