Severe port congestion is impacting inland shipments throughout the U.S. Since late last year, shippers have struggled with both a serious shortage of container chassis, as well as port congestion at the nation’s largest ports. The following ports are currently experiencing congestion and shipment delays:
- Port of Los Angeles
- Port of Long Beach
The congestion is causing containers in some cases to be delayed for days. Truckers are missing appointment times due to the congestion and often have to leave without getting the designated container. Besides congestion we are also seeing chassis shortages and expect further issues as we get closer to the ILWU Negotiations deadline.
The International Longshore & Warehouse Union (ILWU) contract expires at midnight on June 30th, 2014. The ILWU represents labor in 29 west coast ports. It is uncertain if an agreement will be met by this deadline. If the ILWU and PMA fail to reach a common ground and sign a new contract before July 1st, we may encounter slowdowns at the port, work stoppages, or even worse, port strikes throughout the West Coast, all of which will delay imports and exports from moving in and out.
Shipping lines are prepared to impose the following congestion surcharges should the strike or slowdowns cause disruption to their normal operation:
- US$800 per TEU
- US$1000 per FEU
- US$1100 per FEU High Cube
Furthermore, there is a risk of truckers charging congestion fees to shippers.
HNM will be keeping an eye on the port congestion situations and will keep you posted of any further developments.
For more information, or help preparing your contingency plan, please contact HNM Global Logistics
