On the one hand, the possible pairing of two giants of 21st century container flows; on the other, the reawakening of a maritime giant that has lain dormant – relative to the dynamics of global trade today, at least – for number of decades. Both however, lay claim to being true international mar...

Ultimately however, the greatest determining factor in the growth and development of a port is demographics – both in terms of population and economics. Simply, as communities grow, so too does economic output, and thus the requirement for shipping and port services. And in the normal course of ec...

In the second part of Logistic-News’s think-piece on the future of port mergers, we look at cases where the former is the determining factor. Trieste and Koper For the Italian and Slovenian ports, located just 15 km apart in the north of the Adriatic Sea, the idea of a merger is not just an idea, i...

The global container supply chain appears to be locked into an era of epic consolidation, encapsulated by the way three of the most competitive and fiercely independent carriers – Maersk, MSC and CMA CGM – appear to be prepared to put their differences to one side in an attempt to restore their ...

A casualty at sea, labour shortages, strikes and lack of consultation on slow-steaming can all put a spoke in the ocean part of the supply chain, exposing retailers and consumers to crippling supply shocks. For example, some European retailers faced considerable challenges following the sinking of t...

Well, Aerospace One, which will start operations with a single 747-200 (cheap to get hold of, expensive to operate), is a Greek-registered company, with a home base in Chateauroux, France. The first aircraft, which is more than 26 years old, has come from Rayyan Air, the Pakistani airline. Aerospace...

There was an overwhelming sense of fatigue expressed by shippers, forwarders and carriers at this week’s TOC Container Supply Chain event in Antwerp at the seemingly never-ending ups and downs of pricing – as if the industry has found itself on one of those fairground rollercoaster rides that tr...

And on this trip, we’ve seen a lot of Chonqging. From the taxi drivers to the tour guides, no one seems to know their way around. Despite its giddying embrace of industrialisation, this is still very much western, or inland, China. Sophisticated Shanghai it is not. It remains a land of squat toile...

By day, it is a colourless place. Colourless, maybe, but fascinating, definitely. We have written extensively about Apple’s supply chain; about the high-tech manufacturing centres. But the sheer size of just one of Chongqing’s two industrial parks is breathtaking. Xiyong Microelectronics Industr...

During last year’s tough times, larger integrators provided something of a lifeline to smaller charter, ACMI and express carriers. From the Middle East to Scandinavia, short-term express contracts helped prop up various airlines. But short-term contracts are exactly that; all good things come to a...