[FFW News] Port of LA wants the top (again)

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📈 BY THE NUMBERS: Important numbers impacting freight and logistics

⛽ Diesel: $4.545 gal (🔼from $4.444 last week) - Source: EIA

✈️ Air Cargo Index (Sep ‘23): 156.4 (🔼from 155.9 in Aug ‘23) - Source: FRED

🚢 Global Container Index: $1,048.09 - Source: Freightos

Logistics News for Oct. 25, 2023

🚢Port of Los Angeles ready to go back to the top

Gene Seroka, the executive director of the Port of Los Angeles, says that he is confident that the container port will return to the top as one of the busiest—if not the most active—ports on the West Coast and the US. Seroka explained that the Port of LA had a 55% y/y increase in exports during September and that it bodes well as a preview for peak shipping tied to the holiday season. More…

⚓Port of Oakland sees steady volumes in September

The Port of Oakland is also seeing a steady volume in September as trade on the West Coast recovers from the beating it took in the pandemic and the year after. TEUs (twenty-foot containers) rose 1.2% this September compared to September 2022, registering 134,186 TEUs, versus 132,559 TEUs in Sept 2022. However, in a different token, volumes have remained flat compared to August 2023. Read…

🖥️TSA reinstates cybersecurity regulations for passenger and freight rail

Transportation Security Administration (TSA) renewed cybersecurity directives for passenger and freight railroad carriers. Similar rules were established, requiring a set of cybersecurity protocols for transportation systems and infrastructure. For example, the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) ransomware attack in 2021 comes to mind. These are specific to transit cybersecurity. Read more…

✊🏽St. Lawrence Seaway strike could impact Great Lakes trade

Some 360 St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation workers walked off the job. Last year, about $13 billion worth of cargo passed through the route. Trade could dip if a strike persists well into the Great Lakes shipping season. Read…

🚚Truck tonnage dropped by 4.1 percent in September

The American Trucking Association announced that truck tonnage volume across the country dropped by 4.1 percent in September, rounding out the 3rd quarter. The y/y decrease was the most significant drop since November 2020 on a very tough comparison — September 2022 was the last cycle high. Read more…

📖Read these stories over your morning coffee…☕

• “Port of Virginia cargo volumes drop 13% in September” - Supply Chain Dive

• “U.S.-China trade ties 'essential' for both nations” - ECNS

• “China-Latin America and the Caribbean: Investment, Trade, and Future Prospects” - China Briefing

• “US regulator hands out more fines in shipping crackdown” - Financial Times

Compiled by Michael McGrady – news analyst and writer.

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