We are less than two weeks away from what would be a crippling US port strike, as carriers announce surcharges for ocean freight shipments to and from North America.
As we approach the planned action from October 1st, the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) and the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) seem no nearer reaching an agreement, with the current contracts due to expire on September 30th.
A strike would effectively halt operations at 36 ports on the US East and Gulf Coast, crippling ocean freight services in and out of the country.
This week, the US government said it would not invoke its legal powers to intervene, after receiving a letter from 177 trade associations urging it to act if negotiations with the ILA do not resume.
Meanwhile, the largest port on the East Coast – New York/New Jersey – confirmed yesterday that they have started preparations for a complete work stoppage from October 1st.
Killick Martin have now received several notices from carriers outlining plans to introduce emergency surcharges for shipments moving from October to or from US East and Gulf Coasts, as well as ports in the Caribbean, Mexico and Canada.
The level of these surcharges vary from carrier to carrier and range between $500 and $1000 per TEU based on what we have seen so far.
Of course, we are very much hoping that something can be done to avoid this action in the next few days, and will be monitoring developments closely.
