The Loadstar

The Loadstar is fast becoming known at the highest levels of logistics and supply chain management as one of the best sources of influential analysis and commentary.


Friday, March 25, 2022
Shipping

U.S. Officials Look to Pop-Up Container Yards to Ease Congestion, Boost Agriculture Exports

By Ian Putzger in Toronto (The Loadstar) – The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) is on a mission to facilitate agriculture exports this year. Its

March 25, 2022
Total Views: 2581

Friday, March 18, 2022
Shipping

Ocean Carriers Blank More Sailings as Spot Rates Fall

By Mike Wackett (The Loadstar) – Container spot rates continued their decline this week across most Chinese export routes, prompting ocean

March 18, 2022
Total Views: 7116

Wednesday, March 16, 2022
Shipping

Trucking Delays and Ship Queues Grow in China Amid New COVID Lockdowns

By Sam Whelan (The Loadstar) – Forwarders have warned of landside logistics disruption in China from the latest round of Covid-related lockdowns,

March 16, 2022
Total Views: 1563

Tuesday, March 8, 2022
Shipping

Soaring Bunker Prices Could Speed Up ‘Return to Normal’ for Container Shipping

By Mike Wackett (The Loadstar) – Low-sulphur bunker prices increased another $100 per ton yesterday and, having soared by a third since the end of

March 8, 2022
Total Views: 12850

Monday, March 7, 2022
Shipping

Labor Shortages at Sea and on Land as Ukraine Invasion Ripples Spread

By Alex Whiteman (The Loadstar) – Putin’s war against Ukraine will exacerbate the logistics sector’s labour shortage, as sanctions impede

March 7, 2022
Total Views: 1393

Thursday, March 3, 2022
Shipping

Big Ships at the Heart of West Coast Port Congestion

By Mike Wackett in Long Beach (The Loadstar) – BCOs and shippers at the TPM22 conference in Long Beach are questioning why ocean carriers

March 3, 2022
Total Views: 2691

Tuesday, March 1, 2022
Shipping

President Biden to Target Container Shipping Alliances in ‘State of the Union’ Address

By Nick Savvides in Long Beach (The Loadstar) – US President Joe Biden will today take aim at shipping’s exemption from competition law,

March 1, 2022
Total Views: 3712

Tuesday, February 22, 2022
Shipping

Containership Charter Rates Continue to Set New Records, But Some See Softening on the Horizon

By Mike Wackett (The Loadstar) – Containership charter rates and second-hand values are heading for a correction according to a broker source, after

February 22, 2022
Total Views: 1312

Thursday, February 17, 2022
Shipping

Zim’s Long-Term Charter Strategy is Outgunning Its Rivals

By Mike Wackett (The Loadstar) – Through its brokers, Zim has made it known to containership owners that it is prepared to outbid competitor lines to

February 17, 2022
Total Views: 3050

Tuesday, February 15, 2022
Shipping

Container Bull Market Helps HMM Wipe Out Years of Losses

By Mike Wackett (The Loadstar) – South Korean flagship carrier HMM has reported a $4.4bn net profit for 2021, compared with just $100m the year before,

February 15, 2022
Total Views: 994

Friday, February 11, 2022
Shipping

Softening Spot Rates Could Mean End for Ad-Hoc Carriers

By Mike Wackett (The Loadstar) – Maersk said this week it anticipated container spot rates would fall back in the second half of the year, justifying

February 11, 2022
Total Views: 1449

Wednesday, February 9, 2022
Shipping

Rising LNG Bunker Costs Not Deterring Carrier Newbuilds

By Mike Wackett (The Loadstar) – Investment in new LNG-fuelled ships has continued at pace, with class society DNV last month recording a further 40

February 9, 2022
Total Views: 1300

Friday, February 4, 2022
Shipping

Feeder Frenzy Adds to Supply Chain Pressures

By Mike Wackett (The Loadstar) – Global feeder operators are having their heads turned by huge offers for their owned tonnage and chartered-in ships

February 4, 2022
Total Views: 1194

Tuesday, February 1, 2022
Shipping

Liner Industry Appears Set for Another Record Quarter as Rates Bull Run Continues

By Mike Wackett (The Loadstar) – The bull run for ocean carriers appears unstoppable, with profitability in the first quarter of the year looking to be

February 1, 2022
Total Views: 1110

Thursday, January 27, 2022
Shipping

Secondary Trades Suffer as Carriers Chase Big Bucks

By Mike Wackett (The Loadstar) – The cellular fleet grew by 4.5% last year, to 24.97m teu, but capacity was cut on some routes as carriers re-deployed

January 27, 2022
Total Views: 968

Monday, January 24, 2022
OOCL’s ‘Supercharged’ Earnings Tempered By Falling Volumes
Shipping

OOCL’s ‘Supercharged’ Earnings Tempered By Falling Volumes

By Gavin van Marle (The Loadstar) – Huge increases in freight rates last year are likely to lead to container carriers reporting record fourth-quarter

January 24, 2022
Total Views: 1576

Friday, January 21, 2022
Shipping

Asia-US West Coast Spot Rates Spike Ahead of Chinese New Year

By Mike Wackett (The Loadstar) – Container spot rates from Asia to the US west coast spiked this week, ahead of the Chinese New Year holiday on 1

January 21, 2022
Total Views: 1177

Thursday, January 13, 2022
Shipping

Older Containerships Enjoying Busy Year Ahead of New Emission Rules

By Mike Wackett (The Loadstar) – Continued strong demand for container tonnage has resulted in many sizes now being totally ‘sold out’ and their

January 13, 2022
Total Views: 3199

Monday, January 10, 2022
Shipping

FMC Probe Into Hapag-Lloyd D&D Could Set Industry Precedent

By Nick Savvides (The Loadstar) – The US Federal Maritime Commission’s investigation into carrier detention & demurrage (D&D) charges could

January 10, 2022
Total Views: 2393

Friday, January 7, 2022
Shipping

Shippers Wrangle With Decision to Play Spot Market or Go Fixed-Rate

By Mike Wackett (The Loadstar) – Volume shippers offered new long-term fixed-rate contracts by container lines are, nevertheless, still keen to keep a

January 7, 2022
Total Views: 957