Last month’s question was:
How many total employees (including current staff) has M.E. Dey had over the last 100 years?
The correct answer is 180

And the winner of a $50 Target gift card is...
Amy Alatorre  of Mercury Marine with her guess of 157.

The question for this month is:

The decade of the 1960’s was a high point of steamship service to the Port of Milwaukee.  The St Lawrence Seaway opened in 1959.  The seaway allowed large ocean going vessels to call on the numerous ports on the great lakes.  By 1970, the Port of Milwaukee hosted more than 30 steamship lines that offered scheduled service to a variety of foreign destinations around the world.  Some of the steamship names might be familiar:  Farrell Lines, Anchor Lines, Fall line, Ernst Russ, Fjell, Cunard, Manchester liners, Yugoslav Great Lakes Lines, Black Star, Kline, NYK, Mitsui OSK and Zim.  Most were represented by local steamship agents; Kerr, General Steamship, United States Navigation, Nordship, Norton Lilly, Maritime Steamship, Eagle Ocean Transport and Federal Marine Terminals.  A bit earlier, during the 1950’s, M.E.Dey & Co represented one of these lines.  For a $50 gift certificate, can you name that steamship line?  For a tie breaker, can you name the agent that represented Zim? Send your entry  to 100years@medey.com

C U S T O M S   &   S E C U R I T Y

Attention Spring Breakers: New Documents Required for Air Travel to U.S.
If you are traveling by plane on spring break to Mexico or Canada, please keep in mind that the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative requires all travelers to and from the Americas, the Caribbean, and Bermuda to have a passport or other accepted form of documentation to enter or reenter the United States.

Ports Association to Address House Appropriations Subcommittee on Increasing Port Security Funding
AAPA Says President’s Fiscal 2008 Budget Only Half Of What’s Needed

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – (Feb. 12, 2007) – Stressing the crucial role America’s ports play in the nation’s economy and national defense, American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) Vice President of Government Relations Susan Monteverde will go before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security tomorrow afternoon to urge members to increase funding to $400 million a year for the only federal program that helps public ports pay for marine facility security enhancements.

“Constant under-funding of the Department of Homeland Security’s Port Security Grant program has left America’s public  port authorities with the difficult choice of either delaying facility security improvements, paying the lopsided balance themselves, or shifting funds from other necessary improvement projects,” said Ms. Monteverde.  “Although Congress approved and the President signed into law the SAFE Port Act of 2006, which authorized $400 million a year for port security grants, we have yet to see more than about half that amount actually appropriated.  It’s time to put the highest national priority on safeguarding our ports by insisting the federal government live up to its commitment to help pay for those safeguards.”

return to front page

C-TPAT program to revalidate 1,200 companies in 2007
09 Feb 2007, CSCB

The agency that manages the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism will revalidate 1,200 companies in 2007, the first year that participants in the voluntary program will have their supply chain security practices verified for a second time by on-site visits to foreign suppliers.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection will start the on-site audits of a second separate supply chain with the 183 companies that were first validated in 2003 and the 287 firms that received checkups in 2004 because those security assessments were performed in the program’s early years before CBP upgraded eligibility standards from suggested guidelines to minimum criteria, said Todd Owen, executive director of cargo and conveyance security.

CBP plans to re-audit companies every three years as required by Congress in the Department of Homeland Security appropriations act.

But Owen said during a Jan. 30 presentation at the American Association of Exporters and Importers winter conference in New Orleans that all Mexican highway carriers -- nearly 300 in total -- will be revalidated on an annual basis because of the risk that cargo or employees could be compromised by drug traffickers.

The final operational figures for 2006 showed 201 companies have been suspended or removed for security breaches since the program’s inception, including 128 motor carriers.

Another 453 companies were recently booted from the program for not complying with the Oct. 1 deadline for updating corporate security profiles on the new C-TPAT Web portal, Owen said. CBP made extensive efforts to reach out and help companies file the necessary security information, but ultimately pulled the benefit of reduced exams from those that failed to meet their commitment, he added.

CBP, on the strength of additional staffing, completed 2,380 security assessments of corporate supply chains in 2006, compared to 183 when the program first started in 2003, 287 in 2004 and 1,080 in 2005, Owen said.

More than 3,904 companies combined, or about 66 percent of the membership, have been validated during C-TPAT’s first four years. The agency said it expects to make up the difference this year so that every certified applicant has been vetted against its security plan at least once.

The agency expects to conduct 3,000 validations this year, including 1,800 first-time checks of companies with certified security plans, he said. Under the 2006 SAFE Port Act, all first-time validations must be completed within one year of certification so that importers can receive credit for faster security clearances.

Overall, there are 6,200 C-TPAT members in good standing and Owen predicted C-TPAT’s ranks would grow beyond 7,000 companies in 2007.

Owen reiterated that CBP would probably enter into a handful of bilateral mutual recognition agreements with other countries that have similar supply chain partnership programs with the private sector. During CBP’s Trade Symposium in December, he indicated likely candidates for the reciprocal handling of trusted shippers include New Zealand, Australia, Jordan, Canada and Sweden. By recognizing each other’s programs, government and industry officials hope to extend the benefits of reduced inspections without requiring companies to go through redundant reviews of their global security programs, and meet divergent requirements, in each country in which they do business. The challenge is for customs administrations to have confidence in the other side’s security criteria and ability to verify corporate compliance.

Owen, for example, said Canada’s Partners in Protection (PIP) program is still not equal to C-TPAT.

CBP wants Canada to strengthen the program by dedicating more staff to verify that corporate security plans meet basic criteria, more clearly define its security criteria as CBP has done the past two years, and conduct on-site assessments to check that supply chain security practices are followed according to the corporate plan.

“We’re hoping this is the year PIP becomes a much stronger program more in line with C-TPAT,” Owen told the AAEI audience. “If that happens it will help with mutual recognition and we can start to discuss what membership in one program equates to the other. It’s in the hands of the Canadians to tighten up that program.”

CBP is on track this month to begin posting its contract requirements for a limited pilot program using third-party validators, Owen said. The agency is under a congressional mandate to test the concept of outsourcing some validation work to the private sector, in part because of problems at the start with a huge backlog of audits and the amount of time it took for companies to start receiving expedited treatment of their shipments.

Officials say they have enough personnel in the program now to quickly process C-TPAT applicants and view contractors only as a solution in China, which is the only country that won’t allow CBP officers entry to perform validations of local companies. There are about 300 U.S. importers that source at least 75 percent of their products from China and are trapped in the first rung of the program without benefit of further reducing security exams because CBP cannot verify that their suppliers are trustworthy.

CBP has traditionally been opposed to third-party validations because of the proprietary nature of the information businesses share with the program, the agency’s desire to build a rapport with each company, and because officials want to see for themselves that a supply chain is low risk before giving shipments a green lane across the border.

Owen stressed that the use of private contractors to conduct overseas inspections in China is purely voluntary. Companies that want to have their China supply chains audited will have to pay for the validation. CBP will oversee the process, electronically collect the findings and use them to determine the member’s C-TPAT status.

CBP has completed its draft blueprint for a third-party validation program and it is under review by officials at the Department of Homeland Security, Owen said.

Owen announced the list of countries that in 2007 will receive “blitzes” – CBP’s term for sending its 23 teams of supply chain specialists to countries for a concentrated period to check the supply chains of multiple companies. Last year the agency visited suppliers in 74 countries, focusing on logistics networks in high-risk areas. CBP will send teams for the first time to Slovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria and the Czech Republic, Owen said.

CBP electronically distributed in January its return on investment survey developed by the University of Virginia to quantify the costs companies have incurred to beef up their internal security controls and meet C-TPAT requirements. A few recent industry studies have claimed that companies realize significant operational improvements from deploying many types of security measures and technology, but hard conclusions about the benefits of security investments are hard to draw because the sample size of the studies has been extremely small.  

return to front page

North Carolina ports certified for C-TPAT
February 28, 2007

The North Carolina State Ports Authority announced that it has been certified as a partner in the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism program.

The authority's Ports in Morehead City and Wilmington and the Charlotte Inland Terminal received certification in the anti-terrorism program Feb. 26.

The certification is a major step in the ports' ongoing security upgrades, said Doug Campen, the Ports Authority's director of safety and security.

The authority’s $7 million security project, including perimeter fencing, lighting and cameras at all locations, and biometric badges for access control, was completed last fall. The C-TPAT application was filed in December, Campen said.

eManifest arrives at Michigan and New York Border Crossings
buckland bulletin

     Please be advised that the U.S. Federal Register notice has been released announcing that mandatory eManifest for all ports in the states of Michigan and New York effective May 24, 2007.  The responsibility of reporting the eManifest belongs to the carrier crossing the border.  If you have your own vehicles crossing into the U.S. With commercial goods you must be ready to send your manifest detail electronically.  The simplest method is to use CBP's ACE portal which is available free of charge.  This portal allows you to maintain a database of drivers, conveyance equipment and related parties such as consignees.  You can find information on CBP's website www.cbp.gov, then follow the links for ACE Modernization and Truck eManifest.  There is a downloadable application form on this site for the portal.

CBP in Chicago has issued a notice to the importing community

CBP, in an effort to determine admissibility of goods entering the United States (focus is on textile articles), may request additional documentation from the Importer of Record.  The documentation may include, foreign government export license, certificate of origin, or any other documentation that the importer relied on to determine country of origin.  Failure to produce the requested documentation is likely to lead to denial of entry into the United States for the goods. 

It is appropriate to assume that this initiative will apply to other ports as well.

return to front page

S H I P P I N G   &   T R A N S P O R T A T I O N

ATA says Mexico plan is ‘a step toward efficiency’

ALEXANDRIA, Va. (Feb. 23, 2007) — The American Trucking Associations says it supports the Bush administration’s move “to implement the safe, efficient and secure flow of cargo across the border between United States and Mexico, as required by the North American Free Trade Agreement.”

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s limited one-year pilot program, Mexican carriers operating in the United States must comply with all of the safety, environmental, insurance, homeland security and other regulatory requirements that U.S. carriers currently meet.

“Such regulation of Mexican carriers operating in the United States will ensure a level playing field in cross-border operations,” said Clayton Boyce, vice president of public affairs for the trucking industry trade group, in a Feb. 23 statement. “Ensuring a level playing field also requires that when U.S. carriers are to begin operations in Mexico, the permitting and regulatory processes put in place by the government of Mexico must be fair, clear and transparent.”

U.S. and Mexican officials announced Feb. 22 that truck safety inspectors working for Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) will be able to travel in Mexico to conduct safety audits of carriers seeking to operate in the United States, as required by Congress, indicating that both governments are committed to safety in cross-border trucking operations.

Every day nearly $2.4 billion in trade flows between the United States, Mexico and Canada. Seventy-five percent of the value of that trade is carried by truck. Under NAFTA, U.S. exports to Mexico and Canada have increased 157 percent.

By way of background, ATA also reports that performing a single truck shipment between the U.S. and Mexico now requires three drivers and three tractors. A trailer crossing the border must be transferred from the originating carrier to a drayage carrier, cross the border and be transferred again to a carrier that can take it to its destination. There were about nine million such crossings in 2005.  When the border is fully open, the originating carrier will be able to cross the border and deliver the shipment directly to its destination, which will reduce costs, inefficiency, pollution and transit times.

—    The Trucker News Services

return to front page

Teamsters boss calls Mexican truck plan 'Russian roulette'

WASHINGTON (Feb. 23, 2007) — The Teamsters, citing safety and security concerns, have come out in opposition to a U.S. Department of Transportation pilot program to grant qualifying Mexican trucking firms full transborder access to the U.S. road system.

“As with the Dubai Ports debacle, President Bush is willing to risk our national security by giving unfettered access to America’s transportation infrastructure to foreign companies and their government sponsors,” said Jim Hoffa, Teamsters general president in a Feb. 23 statement. “They are playing a game of Russian Roulette on America’s highways. Mexico refuses to meet their end of the bargain yet President Bush rewards them with open access to American highways. It is the American driving public who will pay the consequences.”

The Teamsters Union says it has led efforts to keep the border closed for the past 12 years. Just two years ago, the release notes, the DOT inspector general found that the Mexican government and Mexican motor carriers did not meet congressionally mandated requirements. An inspector general audit report is due in the next couple of months, raising serious questions as to why President Bush is pushing this experimental program ahead of that report.

“Where is the inspector’s general report that tells us that Mexico is meeting U.S. standards?” Hoffa asked. “Why is the President willing to move forward when his own Inspector General has stated that Mexico cannot meet its obligations?”

The plan, according to the Teamsters, raises several serious concerns, including:

• The impact on homeland security initiatives. Will the drivers be checked against the terror watch list or will our borders be open to anyone with a Mexican driver’s license? Will the drivers be required to carry a Mexican passport as U.S. citizens are required to present their passports when entering the country from Mexico or Canada?

• The DOT has been disingenuous about this pilot program, indicating only a few weeks ago that it was not pursuing this pilot program. What else are they lying about?

• Enforcement of Hours of Service in Mexico, false logbooks and fatigued drivers entering the U.S.

• The application of U.S. standards to Mexican drivers including the requirement that U.S. drivers have a Commercial Drivers License, undergo regular physicals and meet minimum age requirements.

• The integrity of drug and alcohol testing. Though testing will be done in U.S. labs, it is unclear who will oversee the collection of random samples creating a system ripe for abuse.

• Enforcement of U.S. wage and hour laws.

• DOT’s assertion that all trucks will be inspected by U.S. officials in Mexico and at the U.S. border when less than 10 percent of all Mexican trucks entering the commercial zone are inspected now.

“The DOT has indicated that ‘this is as narrow [an] experiment’ as they could initiate. Yet it is an experiment that allows 100 companies and an unknown number of Mexican trucks onto our highways and forces the U.S. traveling public to serve as guinea pigs,” Hoffa said. “That is unacceptable. I call on Congress to hold hearings immediately and to put an end to this nonsense.”

The release points to the Teamsters Web site (www.teamster.org) to view two reports on Mexican trucks, one from 1999 and one from 2006.

—    The Trucker News Services

return to front page  

USDA DELAYS INSPECTION AND USER FEE REQUIREMENTS FOR COMMERCIAL TRUCKS, RAILROAD CARS ENTERING THE UNITED STATES FROM CANADA

WASHINGTON, Feb. 22, 2007--The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is delaying the effective date for the collection of user fees from March 1, 2007, to June 1, 2007, for inspections of commercial trucks and railroad cars entering the United States from Canada.

In an interim rule published on Aug. 25, 2006, APHIS announced that it would remove the inspection exemption for Canadian-grown fruits and vegetables and user fee exemption for commercial vessels, trucks, railroad cars and aircraft, as well as international passengers entering the United States from Canada.

Effective March 1, the removal of the inspection exemption for Canadian-grown fruits and vegetables and the user fee exemption for all commercial vessels and aircraft entering the United States from Canada will take effect.  The remaining provisions of the rule (i.e. the removal of the user fee exemption for commercial trucks and commercial railroad cars entering the United States from Canada) will take effect June 1, 2007.

All inspections on the U.S.-Canada border are conducted by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (CBP).  These inspections are necessary to further prevent the introduction of plant and animal pests and diseases into the United States via conventional pathways or through bioterrorism.  Recent inspections along the U.S.-Canada border resulted in numerous interceptions of prohibited fruits and vegetables, originating from regions other than Canada.  These products pose a risk of introducing plant pests into the United States.  APHIS is also concerned about agricultural and other products originating in Canada that could serve as host material for pests and diseases if left uninspected.

The amended regulations will decrease the risk of pests and diseases entering the United States from Canada and will enable APHIS and CBP to recover their agricultural quarantine and inspection (AQI) costs through user fees and expand AQI activities along the U.S.-Canada border.

Federal Register.

Cranes Clear The Decks
February 27, 2007 SkyNews

All 846 containers have finally been removed from the deck of the cargo ship which beached off the Devon coast last month.

The MSC Napoli was deliberately grounded off Sidmouth to prevent it breaking up.

It had suffered hull damage in the Channel during a storm.

Salvage experts now face the task of removing the remaining 1,353 containers from the hold. The operation has involved two crane barges sent from Rotterdam.  They have been transferring the containers to waiting vessels for transport to nearby ports.

A total of 116 containers were lost overboard, 73 of which were washed ashore.  The incident triggered a rush of beachcombers to Branscombe beach.  Thousands of items were salvaged by the public including cosmetics, trainers and a shipment of 17 BMW motorbikes.  Another 30 containers were presumed sunk, 11 submerged containers were traced, and two were lost in French waters

return to front page  

TWIC clock ticking for ports
February 13, 2007      Rick Eyerdam  Florida Shipper

MIAMI -- Potentially costly deadlines are looming for ports and terminals that plan to redraw restricted areas to reduce the number of employees and visitors who require the new Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC), experts told delegates to an American Association of Port Authorities meeting Tuesday.

The Transportation Security Administration program begins March 26 at 10 major seaports which have yet to be identified by the federal agency. Those ports will have 90 days to submit revised plans regarding the areas where individuals without TWIC cards will require official escorts and where TWIC-carrying workers can travel without escort.

All ports have until July 25 to submit their security plans and redefine areas of greater and lesser security.

“If they change their secure areas, ports and terminals may require new fences, new cameras, new check points and signage to be in place to comply with TWIC and Coast Guard rules,” Houston port council Tom Schroeter advised the conference. Since nobody knows who is in the first 10 ports or the next 40, he said port executives and human resources staff should begin making plans to avert staff and logistics problems.

At the Port of New York-New Jersey as many as 50,000 truckers will need the federal ID cards.

The American Association of Port Authorities port administration and legal issues seminar concludes Wednesday.

Port of Portland installs container security system
February 20, 2007  Bill DiBenedetto/The JOURNAL of COMMERCE ONLINE

GE Security Inc. on Monday announced the installation of its CommerceGuard container security system at the Port of Portland.

The installation at the Columbia River port is the first comprehensive use of the system on the West Coast.

According to a GE statement, CommerceGuard is the “first global supply chain system that deters and detects theft, smuggling and international terrorism by integrating container security devices (CSDs) within a global information network.”
“I’m pleased to see additional safeguards for cargo security at the port. Ensuring the security of our ports is vital, both for public safety and for our region’s economic well-being,” Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., said at a ceremony in Portland. “Requiring a state-of-the-art container security device, rather than a simple padlock to secure expedited shipping containers, means we get safer ports and the added benefit of helping businesses move their cargo more quickly. That’s the classic definition of a win-win situation.”

CommerceGuard meets the new requirements for container security devices specified in the Port Security Improvement Act of 2006, GE said.

Bill Wyatt, the port’s executive director said, “In addition to making its facilities as secure as possible, the port is committed to helping its customers implement their own cargo security measures.”
More than a dozen international ports have adopted the GE container security device and reader system. It also has undergone successful international trials with carriers, including Yang Ming, which recently began direct services to Portland, and is in use by top importers, the company said.
The system features the “first market-ready container security device that has been tested and proven to be secure and reliable,” GE said. The CSD is positioned inside a cargo container and registers any opening of the container door. Any unauthorized door opening is recorded as a “tamper event,” and alerts are routed to appropriate officials.
Fixed and handheld readers at points along the supply chain, such as overseas and U.S. ports, collect container status from the device and report it using the CommerceGuard Information Network.

CommerceGuard products are available through a global business collaboration that includes GE Security, Mitsubishi Corp., Samsung Corp. and Siemens Building Technologies.

return to front page  

TACA Announces Tariff Rate Class Restoration and
Panama Canal Fee Increases

The Trans-Atlantic Conference Agreement (TACA), whose member carriers serve the trade between the USA and North Europe, United Kingdom and Ireland, Scandinavia and Baltic Ports, announced a Tariff Rate Class Restoration Program to go into effect April 1, 2007.  TACA remarked that after review of the 2006 Trans-Atlantic trade rates and capacity, these rate increases were determined necessary to maintain and improve the viability of services.

TACA also announced increases to its Panama Canal Transit Fees, effective May 1, 2007.  This increase will push fees for both eastbound and westbound shipments up to $212 from $192 per container.  Effective May 1, 2007, the Panama Canal Authority will implement the third and final tier of its three-year fee increase.  The Panama Canal Authority has also announced further toll increases over the next two years to fund waterway expansion projects.

TACA will retain current Bunker Adjustment Factors (BAF) through April 15, 2007.  TACA’s current Currency Adjustment Factor (CAF) of 8 percent will also remain unchanged at least until April 15, 2007.  BAF thru April 15, 2007 are as follows: to/from Atlantic/Gulf Coast Ports, US$ 395/20ft container, US$ 790/40/45ft container and US$ 40/WM; to/from Pacific Coast Ports, US$ 593/20ft container, US$ 1186/40/45ft container  and US$ 59/WM.  

TACA members are Atlantic Container Line, Maersk Line, Mediterranean Shipping Co., NYK Line and OOCL. Revisions to surcharges are published in TACA's relevant FMC tariffs, and are shown on its website: www.tacaconf.com

Port of Seattle to increase cargo handling capacity
February 19, 2007   (Source: Eyefortransport)

In response to recent and anticipated growth in the ports container shipping business, the Port of Seattle will build a new container terminal and relocate an existing cruise terminal.

Seattle's container volumes grew by nearly 40% from 2003 to 2005, and while volumes were down slightly in 2006, additional growth of approximately 8% annually is expected in the coming years.

Restoring the 32-acre Terminal 30 to a container facility will create a 70-acre container handling complex that includes Terminal 25 and Terminal 28 and adds one vessel berth.

Terminal 30 is less than two miles from two major railroad yards and Interstates 5 and 90, making it an ideal location for the movement of ocean freight.

To make room for the added container capacity, the cruise facility at Terminal 30 will be relocated to Pier 91 on the north side of Elliott Bay.

The estimated cost of the entire project is $118.3 million.

return to front page  

Shipping incentive reduces emissions
By Kristopher Hanson, Staff columnist   02/13/2007

In the competitive world of international shipping, reducing diesel exhaust can rank low on the list of priorities.

Ship captains and the companies who employ them are often preoccupied with navigating rough seas, maintaining their ships, meeting delivery schedules and securing dockside labor.

At the end of the day, or financial quarter, there's not much money to be made operating a low-emission fleet.

So it was a breath of fresh air this week to learn that more than 80 percent of ships calling on the Port of Long Beach are voluntarily slowing down within 20 nautical miles of port, helping cut toxic smog-forming compounds by hundreds of tons annually.

Sure, there's a small financial incentive, but several of the port's top shippers have gone above and beyond the 90 percent compliance rate required for reduced dockage fees under the port's Green Flag program.

In 2006, the port's second-busiest customer, Hanjin Shipping, reduced speed for nearly 97 percent of its 411 trips into and out of our harbor, while the third-busiest, Kawasaki Keisen Kaisha, or "K-Line," complied 99.1 percent of the time.

Orient Overseas Ocean Line (OOCL) was compliant on 121 of 121 journeys, while Mediterranean Shipping's compliance rate was in the high-90s.

The port's most frequent caller, Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK), complied on 80.1 percent of its 477 trips in and out, disqualifying the Tokyo-based shipper from a share of the $2.2 million in reduced dockage fees port commissioners have set aside as a reward.

The most-dismal compliance rates among shippers with 75 or more trips include Hapag-Lloyd Container Line (55.6 percent), Wan Hai Lines (56 percent) and Maruba SCA Empresa (19.6 percent).

www.presstelegram.com/

Evergreen enhances ShipmentLink e-reports
JOC February 27, 2007

Evergreen's ShipmentLink (http://www.shipmentlink.com) has improved the event notification, tracking report and shipment statistics functions of its online reporting system.

Event notification, which automatically provides the customer with e-mail notification when shipment activities occur, now provides the customer with e-mail notification for a specific bill of lading for which that customer has a special concern.

The enhanced tracking capability now allows a customer to access a written report in Excel or PDF format weekly or monthly. By selecting up to 27 data elements in five categories, customized reports can be accessed online or subscribed on a weekly or monthly basis.

Shipment statistics are available in PDF and Excel files, in bar chart, pie chart and line chart formats. Relevant information can be quickly viewed online or can be received by e-mail to help Evergreen customers manage shipments. The summary allows customers to manage their shipments by country of receipt and/or delivery, period of receipt/delivery or export/import vessel.

The detailed report allows customers to choose from 26 data elements to create a customized report. The latest categories include P.O number, seal number on bill of lading, shipper name, consignee name and local document number, among others.

return to front page  

Carriers anticipate significant increases in costs relating to inland rail and truck transportation, container equipment positioning, a growing cargo and equipment imbalance in the transpacific market, and other factors. Based on an internal analysis and forecast of carrier operating and network costs in the coming contract year, carriers are recommending the following schedule of rate adjustments, GRI with effective fm 1 May 07:

US$300/40’ for West Coast

US$650/40’ for MLB (IPI) shipments.

US$500/40’ for East and Gulf Coast & RIPI via AW svc.

PSS $400/40’ fm June 15 to October 15, 2007.

OCEAN – MAERSK HIKING RATES AGAIN

Maersk Line will implement a general rate increase of $200 per TEU for all shipments from Asia to the East Coast of South America, effective April

Pact ends CN rail strike
February 26, 2007 JOC

Workers for Canadian National Railway Co. returned to work Monday after Canada's largest railroad reached a tentative agreement with the union representing about 2,800 striking conductors and yard crews.

Montreal-based Canadian National and the United Transportation Union reached an agreement at around 4 p.m. Saturday.

The strike began Feb. 10 after the sides failed to reach agreement on a new contract to replace a three-year one that expired Dec. 31. The dispute centered on wages and work conditions. Managers filled in for workers to keep freight operations running.

Union members will vote March 26 on the one-year pact, which includes a three-percent wage increase and a C$1,000 bonus on ratification, according to documents published published on a union Web site.

Canadian National and the union were initially negotiating a three-year agreement.

The union was seeking wage increases of 4.5 percent in each of the first two years and four percent in the third year, the railway said in a Feb. 11 statement. UTU-member employees earned an average of C$75,000 in 2006, said Canadian National.

return to front page

E X P O R T

The Census Bureau has posted to its Web site a list of 175 Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) numbers that are invalid for use in reporting exports (either via the Automated Export System (AES) or on a paper Shipper's Export Declaration (SED)) as of February 3, 2007.

COMMERCE SECRETARY LAUDS RECORD EXPORTS IN 2006

New Delhi, India - With today’s release of the 2006 annual trade numbers, U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez issued the following statement praising American companies and workers for making 2006 a record year in exports, and encouraged Congress to support the President's trade agenda.

“In 2006, American workers and businesses had a banner export year with an all time record high of over $1.4 trillion in exports of goods and services. For the first time in nearly a decade, the growth rate of exports outpaced the growth rate of imports.

“Our booming export numbers show the competitiveness of American workers and companies. Our companies send more U.S. products to more international markets than ever. Here in India, for example, we have seen American exports growing rapidly, up 26 percent last year with growth in a range of industries from medical devices to energy. Our nation’s prosperity is dependent on engaging and winning in international markets.

“Today’s numbers show significant export growth to almost all of America’s key trading partners, with American exports rising to 29 out of 30 of our largest trading partners, including export growth of more than 20 percent to countries diverse as Germany (21%), Brazil (25%), China (32%), and Chile (30%).

"While these record numbers show tremendous progress, we still need to do more to grow our exports, open new markets, promote U.S. exports and support the President's trade agenda.

"The President’s trade agenda, including successful conclusion of the Doha Round and passage of Free Trade Agreements with Peru, Colombia and Panama, will open markets for American products and enhance our nation’s prosperity. This makes extension of the President’s Trade Promotion Authority all the more essential as we move forward.”

Secretary Gutierrez is in India for discussions with government officials to explore opportunities to further invigorate commercial relations between the U.S. and India through the mechanisms provided by the U.S.-India Commercial Dialogue, the High Technology Cooperation Group, and the CEO Forum.

return to front page

WTSA Increases BAF and CAF, General Rate Increase Effective April 1, 2007

The Westbound Transpacific Stabilization Agreement (WTSA), whose member lines serve the US export trades from the USA to East Asia have announced increases to their Bunker Adjustment Factors (BAF), Currency Adjustment Factors (CAF), and a General Rate Increase (GRI) to go into effect April 1, 2007.  BAF effective from April 1, 2007 to April 30, 2007 will be US$ 436 per 20ft container, US$ 545 per 40/45ft container, and US$ 28 per WM.  CAF effective from April 1, 2007 to June 30, 2007 are as follows: Japan 0%, Korea 0%, Taiwan 5%, Singapore 12% (increase of 2%).  Inland Fuel Charges on shipments from US inland points will remain at the current levels of US$ 174 per container for rail and intermodal rail/truck shipments, and US$ 50 per container for local/regional truck shipments at least until April 30, 2007.

A GRI for all dry cargoes not covered by commodity-specified rates will take effect April 1, 2007.  There are several exceptions to GRI, and amounts for LTL cargo may vary.  GRI from US Ports via All Water Service: US$ 40 per 20ft container, US$ 50 per 40ft container, US$ 50 per 40ft high-cube container.   GRI from US Inland Points via Rail and Rail/Truck service, and from US Atlantic and Gulf Ports via Mini-Landbridge (MLB) service: US$ 240 per 20ft container, US$ 300 per 40ft container, US$ 300 per 40ft high-cube container.

The 11 member carriers of WTSA are American President Lines, China Shipping Container Lines, COSCO Container Lines, Evergreen Marine Corp., Hanjin Shipping, Hapag-Lloyd Container Line, Hyundai Merchant Marine, "K" Line, NYK Line, OOCL and Yang Ming Marine.   For more information visit www.wtsacarriers.org

return to front page

W O R L D   T R A D E

Dominican Republic joins CAFTA
March 1, 2007

The Department of Commerce on Thursday announced the implementation of the free trade agreement between the United States, Central America and Dominican Republic.

The announcement of the pact, known as DR-CAFTA, was posted on the White House Web site after months of delays attributed to disagreements between Dominican legislation and the requirements by Commerce Department authorities.

Dominican President Leonel Fernandez had said in his speech before the National Assembly Feb. 21 that the trade deal would take effect in the first days of this month.

Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and El Salvador have ratified DR-CAFTA, signed in August, 2004, leaving only Costa Rica yet to approve the pact.

return to front page

Yangshan Port Development, China

The People's Republic of China have taken the decision to build a new deep water port on Big and Little Yangshan Island. The Yangshan port project in Shanghai, China, is one of the largest port project currently under consideration in the world.

PROJECT RATIONALE

The Yangshan project was born after careful assessment of the suitability of the Shanghai port in relation to the forecast traffic growth and the growing use of new, bigger, third and fourth generation container ships.

The port of Shanghai has experienced an explosive growth rate, averaging 29% per year in the last three years. This growth was driven by accelerated export demand, which might gain another short term boost once China is accepted to the World Trade Organisation (WTO). The throughput for 2005, the year that Yangshan port is expected to become operational, is expected to reach 8.5 million TEUs.

Since Shanghai is located at the mouth of the Yangtze River, most of the goods that travel from the Yangtze River region both for import and export go through Shanghai Port. By the end of 1999, total cargo handling capacity at the Shanghai port was over 180 million tons and 4.21 million TEUs (Twenty foot Equivalent Unit). Yet Shanghai's port development has been constrained by two problems:

• The water depth of the Yangtze River estuary is only 7 metres, so third and fourth generation container ships can only come in and out freely at high tide.

• The water depth of the Huangpu River is only 7-8 metres and the river is also too narrow for large ships. Container ships cannot manoeuvre or turn freely.

The Shanghai Municipal Government (SMG) found that in the Yangshan Island the water is at least 15 metres deep, and fifth and sixth generation container ships can come and go freely. The area is a natural shelter from the typhoon belt.

PROJECT TIMESCALE

The starting date of the construction has not been announced yet. Official sources agree that the new port should be ready around 2010.

PROJECT CHARACTERISTICS

The project includes a 52 berth container terminal, located on a cluster of partially inhabited islands in Hangzhou Bay, south of Shanghai. In addition, the project includes a 32 km bridge to connect the islands to the closest on-shore point and a shore based terminal to accommodate auxiliary facilities that cannot fit on the small islands.
 

Because of the small size of the islands and their mountainous topography, construction of the terminal is costly and involves large amounts of reclamation work. The investment required for the first, five berth stages is about $2.8 billion and for the entire 52 berth complex $16-18 billion could be needed. The port will consist of three parts:

• A deep-water port area where fifty container berths will be built at the new deep water port area.

• A bridge 30 kilometres long will be built to connect Big Yangshan Island, Little Yangshan Island and the town of Luchaogang in Nanhui County, Shanghai. The bridge will be a fixed bridge which will have eight lanes and two high rise sections (one for 1,000 dwt vessels and the other for 5,000 dwt vessels) to accommodate Hangzhou Bay ships passing under the bridge.

• A new port city at the Luchaogang area will be built to facilitate the development of the new deep water port.

The total investment of the Phase I project will reach $ 1.8 billion. Phase I includes:

Five container berths that will be finished by 2005. The total handling capacity of the five new berths will be 2 million TEUs. A 32km long bridge with four lanes which will be completed by 2005.

return to front page

E V E N T S

Make Mine a $Million Business® Conference to be Held in Madison

Wisconsin will host the first-ever statewide Make Mine a $Million Business event at the Madison Concourse Hotel on May 21, 2007. Eight Wisconsin women-owned businesses will receive assistance to turn their million-dollar business dreams into reality.

"Women business owners in Wisconsin have a unique opportunity to compete for a year-long package of mentoring and coaching by highly successful individuals," says Department of Commerce Secretary Mary P. Burke. "I strongly encourage all women interested in taking their businesses to the next level to attend the conference."

Make Mine a $Million Business (www.makemineamillion.org) is a program of Count Me In for Women's Economic Independence and Founding Partner OPEN from American Express(r). It is the only national initiative committed to the growth needs of post-start-up, women-owned businesses with less than $1 million in annual revenues. American International Group, Inc. (AIG), world leaders in insurance and financial services, is committed to supporting the economic and social empowerment of women around the world and is a proud partner in the program and a supporter of Count Me In.

"By leading the first grassroots Make Mine a $Million Business program, Wisconsin is giving women entrepreneurs a helpful boost and is setting an example for other states to follow," said Nell Merlino, founder and president, Count Me In. "This event will put Wisconsin at the forefront of our nationwide Make Mine a $Million Business movement."

Women attending the conference will have the opportunity to attend growth-focused workshops on issues including finance, technology and law. Participants will receive expert coaching from local and national corporate sponsors and also Wisconsin non-profits. Attending the conference will also give women entrepreneurs of Wisconsin a chance to network with one another.

"We want women to 'say it out loud' and commit themselves to building a successful, million-dollar enterprise," said Marcella Shinder, vice president, OPEN from American Express. "Perhaps the greatest benefit from participating in the program comes from the confidence and determination women achieve when they declare their intent to build a million-dollar business."

Fifteen Make Mine a $Million Business award nominees will be selected from applicants statewide and asked to compete on May 21, 2007 in Madison at the Concourse Hotel. The Wisconsin award nominees will earn their awards after delivering business pitches to an audience of women entrepreneurs, judges and guests. Throughout the event, attendees will have access to inspirational and educational programming.

Eight program awardees are eligible to receive financing OPEN from American Express and Count Me In, a year of intensive business coaching and mentoring from a "dream team" of successful women entrepreneurs and professional coaches, business software and training from Intuit, discounts on shipping and business services from FedEx, marketing assistance from QVC, and assistance on work/life issues and financial security from AIG. In addition, three awardees will receive a Smart Business Communication technology package from Cisco valued at up to $20,000 complete with installation and support for one year. This robust package will support awardees to build their businesses into million-dollar enterprises. Other corporations will be contributing to the awards package as well.

The cost of the conference is $49, which includes all presentations, lunch, workshops, and networking reception- $35 if you purchase your ticket with your AMEX card.

Make Mine a $Million Business Conference    May 21, 2007
All day Conferences at the Concourse Hotel, 1 West Dayton Street,  Madison, Wisconsin

To complete an award application or register for the conference, visit makemineamillion.org.

-- Tony Hozeny-- Daniel Urzedo, Make Mine a $Million Business, 212/481-7000; danielu@mbooth.com

return to front page

A Modern Parable

A Japanese company (Toyota) and an American company (General Motors) decided to have a canoe race on the Missouri River. Both teams practiced long and hard to reach their peak performance before the race.
     On the big day, the Japanese won by a mile. The Americans, very discouraged and depressed, decided to investigate the reason for the crushing defeat. A management team made up of senior staff was formed to investigate and recommend appropriate action.
     Their conclusion was the Japanese had 8 people rowing and 1 person steering, while the American team had 8 people steering and 1 person rowing.
     Thinking that a deeper study was in order, American management hired a consulting company and paid them a large amount of money for a second opinion. They advised, of course, that too many people were steering the boat, while not enough people were rowing.
     Not sure of how to utilize that information, but wanting to prevent another loss to the Japanese, the rowing team's structure was totally reorganized to 4 steering supervisors, 3 area steering superintendents and 1 assistant superintendent steering manager.
     They also implemented a new performance system that would give the 1 person rowing the boat greater incentive to work harder. It was called the "Rowing Team Quality First Program", with meetings, dinners and free pens for the rower. There was discussion of getting new paddles, canoes and other equipment, extra vacation days for practices and bonuses; the next year the Japanese won by two miles.
     Humiliated, the American management laid off the rower for poor performance, halted development of a new canoe, sold the paddles, and canceled all capital investments for new equipment.
     The money saved was distributed to the Senior Executives as bonuses and the next year's racing team was out-sourced to India.