Industry News

Extension of the UCC transitional period

This week was an important week for the implementation of the UCC. The European Court of Auditors published a report and recommendations concerning delays in the customs IT systems and several meetings were held in the European Parliament on the same topic. The IMCO Committee organised a workshop on 9 October during which CLECAT presented its views.

Port of Southampton container operations update

Further to recent communications about very high stack levels at Southampton, DP World advise that the situation has improved. There is no congestion and truck turnaround times are back to their expected operational levels.

New EU legislation relating to wood packaging material assocated with certain goods from China and Belarus

The Forestry Commission notice of new wood packaging material controls which commenced on 1st October relating to imports of various commodity codes from China and Belarus.

Liner balance postponed

A gloomier world economic outlook and rising trade tensions have forced Drewry to downgrade its forecast for container demand over the next five years, according to the global shipping consultancy’s latest edition of the Container Forecaster.

Drewry survey: IMO 2020 low-sulphur rule exposes widespread concern about lack of fuel cost transparency

London, UK, 2 October 2018 – There is considerable unease among global shippers/BCOs (Beneficial Cargo Owners) and freight forwarders ahead of the IMO’s 2020 global emissions regulations, due to come into force on 1 January 2020, according to a survey conducted by global shipping consultancy Drewry.

Freight Volumes Continue to Trend Upward in August, Up 2.3%

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) released data for global air freight markets showing that demand, measured in freight tonne kilometers (FTKs), rose 2.3% in August 2018, compared to the same period the year before. This pace of growth was unchanged from the previous month but was less than half the five-year average growth rate of 5.1%.

Warning to HGV drivers travelling on A1M and A1 in Lincs and Yorks

The Police National Vehicle Crime Intelligence Service (NaVCIS) have reported several incidents recently on the A1 Route through Lincolnshire, Yorkshire and maybe further South.

Damage limitation

The decision of 2M carriers Maersk Line and MSC to suspend the ULCV-deployed AE2 Asia-North Europe service won’t raise freight rates, but should temper the decline in the slow demand months ahead.

CLECAT's Brexit Working Group meets

On 17 and 18 September, thirty high level customs experts and representatives of the freight forwarding and customs service industry from throughout Europe gathered at the WCO in Brussels to discuss the implications of Brexit at CLECAT’s Brexit Working Group (BWG).

World Container Index - 20 Sep

The World Container Index assessed by Drewry, a composite of container freight rates on 8 major routes to/from the US, Europe and Asia, is down by 1.6% to $1,725.32 per 40ft container (updated Thursday, 20 September 2018).