An air cargo carrier has just launched a new twice-weekly scheduled service to Chongqing, China. The flight from Luxembourg via Doha and Sharjah, lands at Chongqing’s Jianbai International Airport. The return route is via Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Baku.  The second route is via Tbilisi, Baku and Singapore, and returns via Baku. Chongqing’s  rapid economic and social [...]

A ship carrying freight from Merseyside to Belfast was in collision with a ferry last week.An investigation into the incident, which happened about a mile and a half from shore between Carrickfergus and Helen’s Bay, was instituted immediately. There were no injuries,  but both vessels, the Stena Feronia  and the Union Moon, were substantially damaged. The Maritime and [...]

Transhipment cargo through South Korean ports recorded double-digit growth for the 11th consecutive month since March 2011.  This is freight which would previously have shipped through northern Chinese ports. Transhipment cargo handled by the port surged 23% to 671,000teu, with imports and exports rising slightly, up 0.3%, to 684,000teu. The country’s largest port, Busan 450km [...]

The Port of Belfast was pleased to report an increase in freight volumes in 2011 over the previous year.  Bulk cargo, especially steel and steel coil traffic doubled in 2011, compared with 2010. This reflected improved activity in Northern Ireland’s engineering manufacturing sector, while the number of freight vehicles using the port rose by 14%. Belfast [...]

Ports on the West Coast of the USA came to a halt earlier in the week as Occupy Wall Street protesters blocked freight trucks at ports.  Freight and logistics terminals in Oakland, California, Portland, Oregon and Longview Washington had operations halted. The organisers are claiming victory, because although the freight drivers are still waiting in [...]

Container freight rates are continuing to fall while shipping lines have excess capacity and compete with each other for reducing volumes of cargo. Rates on the Asia to Europe and Asia to west coast Europe are falling according to the Shanghai Containerised Freight Index. While some container lines have been withdrawing capacity, growth has been [...]

The volume of freight through the Port of Rotterdam increased during the first nine months of 2011 by 1.7% to 327 million tons. Now that the world economy is cooling down,exports are stalling. Growth is expected to decrease in the fourth quarter. Freight container throughput increased; 93 million tons were handled, 11% more than in the [...]

This week sees the first trips by the largest ever barge/tug combination which can carry inland shipping.  The inland terminals of Oss and Venlo in the Netherlands will be using the combination to carry freight to Rotterdam port.  The barge will unload and load cargo in Oss and the motor ship will do so in Venlo. [...]

One of the world’s major shipping lines has announced a new service from Asia to Europe which will ‘guarantee’ a sailing every day at the same time, with a guaranteed arrival time.   From next month, the service will operate as a giant ocean conveyor belt, and will compensate customers if containers are not delivered [...]

A new kind of airship under development is designed to carry hundreds of tonnes of freight at one time. The technology is being developed by the NASA space agency, which is hoping that the airships will be able to replace lorries, trains and ships as cargo carriers.  The prototype should make its maiden voyage next [...]

Criminals in the USA are stealing the identities of legitimate business to help them steal cargo, according to a crime analytics unit.  They can also set up false businesses which appear to be genuine so they can access freight companies’ shipments; they take company information from the internet to make them appear legitimate. In some [...]

Last month an Asiana Airlines cargo aircraft crashed into the sea off the southern coast of South Korea.  The aeroplane had reported a fire in its cargo compartments, and both pilots died.  It was carrying 58 tonnes of freight, mainly electronic and machine parts but also paint and other chemicals. This was the worst accident [...]

Although rain is now giving relief from China’s six month drought, navigation for cargo shipping is still restricted on the Yangtze river – the longest river in Asia – as conditions vary from drought to flood. The drought suspended cargo shipping along a 224-kilometer (140-mile) stretch in the middle and lower reaches of the river [...]