Global Logistics - Weekly Recap

Over the years, SCFI and Baltic Dry have displayed erratic and poor correlations. In general, Baltic Dry is volatile and closely follows commodity markets. As for the container index, it was more stable prior to the pandemic and gained roughly 460% to the peak. However, it has since fallen about 66% in the last 42 weeks. There was a similar run and correction for Baltic dry as well. Although Baltic dry markets experienced a sharp correction, they had a few decent runs higher during the fall, whereas containerized markets have continued to decline without pause.?

Great Odd lots podcast (transcript) by Joe Weisenthal - Drought conditions in the Midwest have lowered water levels on the Mississippi River to their worst depth since the late 1980s. Lower water levels make the movement of barges down the river costlier and slower. And this is creating a supply chain headache for farmers and other industries that rely on the waterway to export goods. To understand the severity of the problem, we spoke with three guests.

The idled containership fleet has breached the 1m teu capacity milestone – and is set to jump significantly higher as carriers prepare to temporarily suspend services rather than blank sailings. According to Alphaliner, as of 24 October, the number of inactive containerships either in drydock or seeking employment had reached 284, for a capacity of 1.2m teu, representing 4.6% of the global cellular fleet. (The Loadstar)

Global schedule reliability declined by -0.7 percentage points M/M in September 2022 and reached 45.5%. The average delay for LATE vessel arrivals has been dropping consistently since the start of the year. In September 2022, the average delay improved once again, dropping by another -0.10 days M/M to 5.81 days. This is the second consecutive month that the average delay figure has dropped below the 6-day mark since April 2021.

These are the key findings from the World Benchmarking Alliance’s new Transport Benchmark, conducted with CDP, the non-profit that runs the world’s environmental disclosure system. Our comprehensive research looked at the decarbonization progress of 25 airlines, 17 shipping businesses, nine rail companies, six road companies, and 33 multimodal companies. Those assessed included American Airlines, Japan Airlines, Ryanair, Qatar Airways, Maersk, Royal Mail, Indian Railways, and FedEx. We uncovered a concerning lack of action across the sector. Companies are creating an illusion of progress by failing to provide details on how they plan to achieve targets.

Christmas didn’t come early for the global air cargo industry as volumes declined 8% year-over-year in October and provided no current signals to indicate an upturn in 2023, as year-over-year demand fell for the eighth consecutive month, according to new weekly market data from industry analysts CLIVE Data Services, part of Xeneta. The drop in demand, measured in chargeable weight, was also 3% below the pre-pandemic level in 2019.

Italian ports can become the sea transportation solution for cargo to and from landlocked Hungary. This is not only attractive for continental traffic, but also for rail freight between China and Europe. This was pointed out by Domenico Baratta from the Italian Society for Import Export (Siiesiie), a Eurasian logistics company based in Italy. The Adriatic corridor is a popular transport link for cargo to and from Hungary arriving by sea, and this popularity has only increased since the outbreak of the war. “(RailFreight)

A British subsidiary of mining and trading group Glencore was ordered to pay a total penalty of 276.4 million pounds ($310.6 million) in a London court on Thursday for seven bribery offenses in relation to its oil operations in Africa. Glencore Energy UK Limited was ordered to pay a 182.9 million pound fine by Judge Peter Fraser at Southwark Crown Court, who also approved a 93.5 million pound confiscation order. "This is a significant overall total," the judge said. "Other companies tempted to engage in similar corruption should be aware that similar sanctions lie ahead."The judge said the offenses to which Glencore had pleaded guilty represented "corporate corruption on a widespread scale, deploying very substantial sums of money in bribes". (RTRS)

Deliveries of U.S. crude oil to Asia are set to touch a record 1.8 million barrels per day this month, Kpler shipping data showed, as demand climbed on a widening discount to global oil. Refiners in China, India and South Korea are returning as big U.S. crude oil buyers after several months of scooping up cheap Russian barrels. Asia's renewed buying reflects soaring demand for crude to produce diesel fuel and comes as Europe continued to stock up in the aftermath of Western sanctions on Russian purchases.

Available European warehouse space at an all-time low. Latest research from global real estate advisor, CBRE, shows that the supply of European logistics space has dropped to a new low, with average vacancy rates across the region sitting just under 2.3%. The low availability levels are restraining the number of units that can be offered to occupiers and have left many requirements unmet. Occupier demand while slightly lower than this time last year remains robust with take up year-to-date totaling 19.56 million sqm (2 million ft2) as at Q3 2022. (LM)

Supply-chain technology provider project44 has postponed plans for a possible public stock offering amid the uncertainty in markets and instead is turning to more venture-capital investment to expand its business tracking goods through global transportation networks. Chicago-based project44, one of an array of supply-chain software startups that have drawn billions of dollars in investments in recent years, announced $80 million in new backing on Thursday, in a funding round that values the company at $2.7 billion.(WSJ)

If driving your car ever feels a bit like navigating a computer on wheels, you're right. The automotive industry is undergoing a shift from hardware to software-defined vehicles, where software enables connections across the transportation ecosystem. Here are a few other growing trends in automotive connectivity:

On a lighter note...

Whenever a small parcel carrier asks for double-digit GPI.........