Topic: Ocean Freight

The United States Supreme Court said yesterday that it has agreed to hear arguments in regards to the legality of tariffs implemented by the White House under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), in the form of an expedited review set to begin in November.  

For July, the most recent month for which data is available, U.S. imports came in at 2.36 million TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), with the report’s authors saying that this tally excludes numbers for New York/New Jersey, Port Everglades, and Miami, marking a 20.1% gain over July, a period when importers were bringing in merchandise in advance of tariffs going into effect on August 1, while posting a 1.8% annual gain. This tally would mark the second highest-volume month on record, trailing...

Logistics Management (LM) Group News Editor Jeff Berman recently spoke with Matt Muenster, Chief Economist for Green Bay, Wisc.-based Breakthrough, an innovator in transportation management, dedicated to creating transparent and fair strategies for the world’s leading shippers. Muenster provided Berman with an overview of trade and tariffs, the industrial economy, and Peak Season, among other topics. 

The August LMI reading, at 59.3, eked out a 0.1% gain over July’s 59.2.

It is hard to find a period in time in which supply chains have seen so much volatility and uncertainty, in various ways as over the last five years. That is nothing new, to be sure, but, at the same time, it does speak to the significance of the industry (whether you may be a shipper, carrier, 3PL, academic, analyst, lobbyist, or anything else along those lines).

Late last week, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issued a ruling, by a 7-4 margin, in which it stated the majority of the IEEPA (International Emergency Economic Powers Act) tariffs rolled out by the White House are illegal. Tariffs will remain temporarily in place until October 14, which will give the White House time to appeal its case to the Supreme Court.

Following a late July announcement in which the United States and the 27-nation bloc comprising the European Union, which collectively represents the largest trading partner for the U.S., announced they had come to terms on the framework of a large global trade deal, the parties said earlier today that they have agreed to additional details but are not yet at the finish line.

July imports, at 3.01 million TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), headed up 3.7% annually, topping the 2.90 million TEU in July 20214, and cracking the 3 million TEU mark for the first time.

POLA reported that total July volume, at 1,019,837 Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEU), increased 8.5% annually, marking the highest-volume month in the port’s 117 years of operations. The Port of Long Beach reported that total July volume, at 944,232 TEU, rose 7% annually, setting a new July record, topping the previous high set in 2024, while posting the third-highest tally, for any month, on record for the port.

July U.S.-bound container import volume—at 2,621,910 TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units)—increased 18.2% over June and were up 2.6% annually.

Following a 90-day pause rolled out in May, which was set to expire today, the White House said yesterday, in an Executive Order, that tariffs on United States-bound imports from China will remain at current levels for another 90 days, through November 10.

Discover the winners of Logistics Management’s prestigious “42nd Annual Quest for Quality Awards,” honoring top performers in transportation and logistics services. This year’s survey garnered over 3,017 responses, evaluating providers across key criteria like On-time Performance, Customer Service, and Information Technology.

Discover the winners of Logistics Management’s prestigious “42nd Annual Quest for Quality Awards,” honoring top performers in transportation and logistics services. This year’s survey garnered over 3,017 responses, evaluating providers across key criteria like On-time Performance, Customer Service, and Information Technology. Categories include motor carriers, railroads, ocean carriers, and more, reflecting LM’s commitment to excellence in service quality. Learn who stood out and what sets them apart in the logistics industry.

With the White House’s widespread reciprocal tariffs on dozens of U.S. trading partners taking effect on August 7, the report said it expects total 2025 import cargo volume for the ports cited in the report to be 5.6% lower annually.

Total second quarter, at 4,579,798 units, increased 2.4% annually, marking the seventh consecutive quarter of annual growth, following eight straight quarters of annual declines.

As of August 7, the U.S. has put new tariffs in place on goods from dozens of countries. The updated rates vary widely, with some close trade partners seeing 10 percent tariffs and others facing rates above 40 percent.

A common refrain among industry stakeholders has been that they know tariffs are coming, or have already arrived, but they badly want, and need, some clarity and stability on tariff rates in order to effectively take action, as it relates to a whole host of things, including: operations; sourcing and procurement; inventory management; capital expenditures; and hiring and staffing, among many others.

Following a late July development, in which the framework of a large trade deal between the United States and the 27-nation bloc comprising the European Union, which collectively represents the largest trading partner for the U.S., was finalized, various reports published earlier this week stated that the EU is pausing is planned tariffs on U.S. goods, originally set for August 7, for six months, providing more time for both sides to come to terms on a broader agreement.

The July Services PMI, at 50.1 (a reading of 50 or higher signals growth), fell 0.7% off of June’s 50.8 reading, growing, at a slower rate, for the second consecutive month.

Following the late May announcement, in which Sydney, Australia-based WiseTech Global, a provider of logistics software, including CargoWise, its logistics execution platform, announced it would acquire e2open Parent Holdings Inc., parent company of Austin, Texas-based e2open, a network-based provider of cloud-based, mission-critical, end-to-end supply chain management platform services, WiseTech said the deal is now official.