1243 words 5 minute read – Let’s do this!
Q1 2024 is officially one-third over – February is here! I had the pleasure of visiting Norfolk and Baltimore this week, and I got to experience about 96 minutes of sun in Norfolk, there was no sun in Baltimore (we can relate) and now heading back to the chilly overcast Buffalo weather – but home is home and I love it. I want to thank everyone that made my visit special and always awesome to put a face to a name for those of you that I have met in person for the first time. Both ports seem to be cranking with an outpour of import and export out-of-gauge cargo, and it is great to see it after such a dull 2023. Port X Logistics has a team that is heavily involved in project cargo and can handle all your shipments into and out of all the U.S. and Canada ports. We have done it all from Flat Racks, to Open Tops and Breakbulk to Ro-Ro, we can manage all transloading and port pickups and specialized trucking and we can even coordinate crane and rigging crews on site at the pickup and final destination locations. Contact Jill and Ryan, we are the OOG Professionals that can help with your OOG project needs, just hand it over to us, we will collect, dissect, put the load plan together and wrap it all up with a bow for you to present to your clients. We are also available any day of the week to help with emergencies or if you just need to understand the “ins” and “outs” of project cargo – Let us be your “Superpeople”! letsgetrolling@portxlogistics.com
Lunar New Year is on the horizon and the Ports of LA and Long Beach are anticipating 2024 to be a slower year with fewer vessel arrivals in pre-Lunar New Year 2024 compared to 2019. “HOWEVER” Disruptions are also on the horizon, the Panama canal restrictions which started in the summer, have eventually led to Houthi rebels attacking the Red Sea and Suez Canal attacks, which have grown more and more serious over the past few weeks. Ocean Carriers have been opting to route through the African Cape of Good Hope to avoid attacks and “war-risk” fees are also faced with additional transit times of 10-14 days. This spring also marks the start of a new longshore labor union contract for the East and Gulf coasts, which has shippers uneasy and some even shifting their cargo back to the West Coast. We have also entered U.S. election year. Uncertainty in the market creates chaos, and without a crystal ball we have no idea what is in store for us for 2024. Chaos in this market also creates increasing costs and fees and slower transit times and congestion. The Port X Logistics team considers ourselves well versed in the industry and we bring you these Market Updates as a helpful way to keep your finger on the pulse of market changes, follow our Linkedin page to be a part of the ever changing market of 2024 and you can email our marketing team to have all Market Updates and any important Port X Logistics announcements sent directly to your inbox marketing@portxlogistics.com
Airport wait times have also been increasing – is this a result of shippers having the need to airfreight cargo in the midst of the Panama and Suez canals? The need for airfreight could be on the rise and our Carrier911 team is your best option for your incoming expedited freight – We have cargo vans, straight trucks, dry vans and specialized equipment for all your urgent shipment needs and in most cases we can have drivers onsite at the airport within one hour after dispatch for pickup. We are available 24/7/365 and all shipments will have shareable real time driver tracking links and a POD at your fingertips at time of delivery – to learn more or if you have a need for an urgent bail out contact the team at info@carrier911.com and follow the Carrier911 Linkedin page for our unique shipment stories
Import TEUs are down 30.55% this week from last, but as you can see from the chart below, volumes are significantly higher than YTD last year. The heaviest volume this week is arriving to Long Beach at 27.4% of incoming TEU volume, Houston at 11% of incoming TEU volume and Los Angeles at 10.5% of incoming TEU volume. Will we continue to see an uptick in import TEU volumes?
What’s happening at the ports and rails?:
Houston: As Houston import volumes are increasing this week, it is pushing up to 1 day waiting time for vessel berthing at Barbours Cut terminal and 2 days at Bayport Container Terminal, with average gate turn times at Barbours Cut Container Terminal at 39 minutes and 40 minutes at Bayport Container Terminal. Although driver wait times are not terrible, volume increases could also lead to capacity crunches – and we have a solution for you! Port X Logistics has drayage assets in Houston with the capability of long-haul drayage and we have a transload warehouse in LaPorte that can transload anything from standard pallets, to heavy lumber and industrial coils. If you need help in the Houston area we got your back, contact letsgetrolling@portxlogistics.com
Savannah: An exciting major infrastructure improvement in relation to the expansion of container operations at Ocean Terminal will come in the form of an overpass that provides a direct route from the terminal to U.S. 17 – What else is exciting? Port X Logistics Savannah also has drayage service to and from Savannah, Charleston and Jacksonville ports. We also have a full service transload warehouse in Savannah and can handle last-minute urgent transloads and cross docks. Contact Sav@portxlogistics.com for the Gold Standard of drayage, transloading and trucking .
Chicago: BNSF Elwood is experiencing congestion and drivers waiting 2-4 hours to pick up boxes. Even with all that wait time, our Chicago asset drayage team has full capacity to get your Chicago containers moving. We have 80 trucks and secured yard space and we are able to secure permits to haul heavy containers. For great rates, capacity and supreme customer service contact Danny and the team at letsgetrolling@portxlogistics.com
Did you know? Our Founder “BK” Brian was a special guest on this weeks’ The Logistics of Logistics podcast, joined by host Joe Lynch, and Director of Industry Solutions Frank Kenney of Cleo to discuss drought, drones, and delays. If you missed this industry powerhouse trio, here is your chance to listen:
Drought, Drones, and Delays With Brian Kempisty
BK is not only the recipient of EY Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2023 New York award, he is a true industry veteran and expert with a strategic edge that is focused on providing solutions. If you are interested in having a conversation with BK about the industry or his successes, or would like to have him on a podcast or interview, contact our marketing team to discuss Marketing@portxlogistics.com
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