“As of now, there is not a high probability of a prolonged strike on the US East/Gulf Coast and Canada, but the threat of a strike is causing shippers to move their booking pairings back to the West Coast to avoid both regions,” said Paul Brashier, vice president of global supply chain at ITS Logistics.

The ITS Logistics US port/rail ramp freight index for July reveals that pre-retail-peak season shipping activity has brought moderate volume increases to most markets, but a lack of equipment has stressed import volumes at origin.

In addition, due to the overseas import origin equipment shortages, shippers are having to book into new North American entry points outside of their current supply chain network.

“Despite having a lack of equipment, North American inland transportation is still not experiencing significant operational challenges as a result,” Brashier said in a company release.

“That said, as it relates to North American entry points, the equipment shortages are causing shippers some moderate disruption this month. This is especially true in the last 7-10 days of July. Volumes should increase as we move into August and peak volumes move from docks at import origin to the US,” he said.

This month, the Port of Los Angeles container volumes increased by 14.4 per cent due to strong trade activity, which was amplified by the early peak season, threats of a labour strike at both the East and Gulf Coast ports, and consistent consumer spending.

As for the current threat of a labour strike, with only 70 days left in the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) current contract, discussions remained stalled, as the union’s strategy was to resolve all local jurisdiction contracts and then commence negotiations for the master contract.

Numerous vessels are blanking calls at some of the smaller to medium-volume US ports, which is affecting exports. When paired with the equipment imbalance, this will continue to create a challenge for exporters into the fourth quarter this year, the logistics company predicted.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)