Kuehne + Nagel swoops on Tennessee drayage provider IMC Logistics - The Loadstar

Kuehne + Nagel has acquired a majority 51% stake in a IMC Logistics, a Tennessee drayage provider with an annual throughput of 2m teu. The transaction is set for completion during Q1 25. IMC has some 49 locations and 1,700 employees and generated $800m in 2023. "International sea logistics is a highly complex business with many interfaces and stakeholders, in which US trade flows are of central importance," said Kuehne+Nagel CEO Stefan Paul. "IMC's range of capabilities significantly expands our service offering and allows us to develop even more attractive solutions for the value chains of our sea freight customers." Joerg Wolle, chairman of K+N International, described North America as a "key growth market for our business", and added: "Acquiring a majority stake in IMC represents another important strategic step. "We are further expanding our leading position in North America for the benefit of our customers and closer cooperation with our partners, particularly the carriers." The acquisition could grant K+N preferential access to trucking services at a time when the US is awaiting its next period of instability, with the east coast ILU port strikes set for January. One air cargo expert told The Loadstar last month that ocean and drayage rates would be "expected to increase as capacity dries up" in the event of a strike. Drayage services can be one of the first dominoes to fall in periods of instability, such as during the Covid pandemic, when the lack of onward transhipment options and shortage of empty containers snarled up port capacity and kept vessels queueing for berths rather than being unloaded. This could also mark the end of a conservative phase of market realignment for K+N, which this year embarked on a "streamlining" drive for "further efficiency gains and profitable growth", following weak results in 2023.

Forwarders slam Canadian government 'late intervention' in port strikes - The Loadstar

Forwarders have lambasted the Canadian government for its "late intervention" in the stand-off between dockers and their employers across the country's ports. Responding to labour minister Steve MacKinnon's order to the Industrial Relations Board (IRB) this week to extend existing collective bargaining agreements and impose arbitration on all parties, one forwarder told The Loadstar: "The big question here is why the government waited until the damage was done before stepping in. "It was clear to everyone they'd have to get involved and, once again, they waited until the strike was in full effect before coming to the rescue. "Industry is pleased that goods will be moving again, but probably more annoyed that it's kind of too late, the damage has been done." Despite the intervention, unions, including the Longshoremen's CUPE Local 375 at the port of Montreal, have vowed to fight the action in the courts. Similarly, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 514, representing dockers in British Colombia, warned the government it would "not forget how employers and this federal Liberal government have attacked all of labour". The forwarder we spoke with said this action could impact the government's relationship with unions, adding: "It'll be interesting to see if the unions truly do remember this." Nor is this the first time Mr MacKinnon's timing has been considered off, his August decision to use the IRB to resolve a dispute between rail workers and their employers was criticised. As in the present situation, the labour minister forced members of the Teamsters Union into binding arbitration with railroads Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) and Canadian National (CN), again provoking unions, who said Mr MacKinnon had been "manipulated" by the carriers. The forwarder said that situation had played out "almost exactly like this, with government getting involved too late... The difference here is timing, the port strike is in the busiest season". "I don't think it's a coincidence this has happened during the holiday rush. The impact will be significant. Unfortunately, the only ones who end up paying for all of this are consumers. That's where all of the additional cost has to trickle down." At Montreal, the dispute centres around terminals operated by Termont, responsible for some 40% of the port's volume, and has been rumbling on since 31 October, with carriers having sought to bypass the situation by rerouting services into Halifax. Warning "while there may be some progress" with this diversion, the forwarder said, carriers could face cargo backlogs there. "It only works if union members in Halifax agree to offload the containers, because in previous scenarios other ports refused to accept ships originally destined for ports that were on strike. "It'll take weeks to clear the backlog and, during the holiday season rush to get goods on the shelves, a lot of them won't make it on time, and the cost will increase significantly." In a warning to shippers, the forwarder noted that, while the cost may flow down to consumers, given the seasonality of products coming in, it may "be much more difficult to pass the cost on after the holiday rush".

CMA CGM changes course on plan to re-route service through Red Sea - The Loadstar

Pressure from customers has apparently caused French mainline operator CMA CGM to u-turn on plans to operate its INDAMEX (Indian Subcontinent-US East Coast) service through the Suez Canal, just weeks after announcing it. It said it would drop the lengthy detour round the Cape of Good Hope in favour of using the Red Sea transit, and the reversal is likely due to cargo insurers refusing to cover this while the threat of Houthi attacks persists. INDAMEX launched in August with nine 9,000-10,000 teu ships calling Port Qasim, Nhava Sheva, Mundra, New York, Norfolk, Savannah, Charleston and Port Qasim, going round the Cape of Good Hope. But this month CMA CGM unveiled a new schedule, indicating it would redirect INDAMEX via the Suez Canal, using 11 8,500-9,950 teu ships, the CMA CGM Pelleas set to be the first on the route mid-month. CMA CGM has not responded to The Loadstar's request for comment. But Vespucci Maritime's Lars Jensen said in a LinkedIn post: "It appears this rapid change in perspective might have been caused by customer pushback." Linerlytica analyst Tan Hua Joo noted that CMA CGM had been the sole exception among Asia-Europe liner service providers rerouting their services around the Cape, as the French line retains a single Asia-Mediterranean service still using the Suez Canal. Mr Tan told The Loadstar: "CMA CGM is already using the Suez route for its BEX2 service, so already has arrangements in place. The backtracking [on INDAMEX] would be more likely due to customer pressure as many of them would not have insurance cover." According to Alphaliner, Houthi rebels do not target ships on the BEX2 service as they carry containers to and from Lebanon.