Republican Senator John McCain introduced draft legislation on Friday that seeks to repeal the 90-year-old Jones Act that prohibits foreign-flagged and crewed vessels from competing domestically port-to-port in the U.S.
In a statement regarding his “Open America’s Waters Act” Sen. McCain said:
“Today I am pleased to introduce legislation that would fully repeal the Jones Act, a 1920s law that hinders free trade and favors labor unions over consumers…This restriction only serves to raise shipping costs, thereby making U.S. farmers less competitive and increasing costs for American consumers.”
The Jones Act is once again a hot topic in the wake of the U.S. Gulf oil spill and debate over whether to allow specialized foreign-owned "skimmers" to assist in clean-up efforts within the 3-mile barrier from land that is protected by U.S. cabotage law.
As reported here last week, there were reports that Dutch assistance in this manner was rebuffed by the U.S. in tandem with the news that Senator Kay Bailey Hutchinson of Texas had reportedly filed legislation to temporarily waive the Jones Act to allow more foreign vessel assistance within the 3-miles of the U.S. coastline.
The Maritime Cabotage Task Force (MCTF), a group that counts 350 members composed of U.S. shipping companies and related organizations, is pushing a more specific exemption to the Jones Act that could allow foreign oil response vessels within the 3-mile limit if there was a need.
However, the MCTF contended in a statement last week that "hundreds of American vessels are already involved in the Gulf cleanup but there are many more American vessels standing by waiting to be called."
The Obama Administration has thus far not shown willingness to move against Jones Act restrictions in the Gulf Oil spill.
Senator McCain, a long-time reported opponent of the 1920 U.S. law, urged otherwise.
“The Administration has the ability to grant a waiver of the Jones Act to any vessel – just as the previous Administration did during Hurricane Katrina – to allow the international community to assist in recovery efforts. Unfortunately, this Administration has not done so,” he said.
“Therefore, some Senators have put forward legislation to waive the Jones Act during emergency situations, and I am proud to co-sponsor this legislation. However, the best course of action is to permanently repeal the Jones Act in order to boost the economy, saving consumers hundreds of millions of dollars. I hope my colleagues will join me in this effort to repeal this unnecessary, antiquated legislation in order to spur job creation and promote free trade.”
The Burlington Northern Santa Fe and CSX railroads spent less lobbying the Federal Government in the first quarter of this year compared to the final quarter of 2009, according to disclosure reports.
The BNSF spent $1.3 million in the first three months of 2010, down from approximately $1.5 million in the fourth quarter of last year. The U.S. western railroad’s eastern counterpart – CSX – spent $1.1 million, down from $1.5 million for the same time frames.
For the first quarter, BNSF lobbied, among others, Congress and the Department of Transportation over such issues as freight rail infrastructure expansion, antitrust classification, railroad tax maintenance credit, emissions and safety issues, and high-speed passenger rail
The CSX Railroad lobbied over similar themes to the BNSF, and also included clean energy jobs, national energy policy, and security in its national agendas.
YRC selling logistics unit for $37 mil
YRC Worldwide Inc. is selling most of its logistics business to a private equity investor for $37 million as it seeks to streamline operations and raise cash.
The Overland Park-based company on Friday announced a definitive agreement to sell most of YRC Logistics to Austin Ventures which will use the unit as the core of a new company specializing in international freight forwarding, customs brokerage, transportation management, truckload services, and warehouse and fulfillment services in North America, Latin America, Europe and Asia.
YRC said it would retain its China-based logistics operations. In mid-2008, the company bought a majority stake in one of China’s largest trucking services companies for $44.7 million.
The unit finished the first quarter with $76.1 million in revenue, a 32 percent drop from the same period a year before, and an operating loss of $7.5 million. For 2009, logistics revenue declined 33.8 percent to $411.8 million, with an operating loss of $4.5 million.
The global port operator controlled by Dubai World on Monday delayed a months-old plan to list its shares on the London Stock Exchange because of the pending merger of the Gulf city's own stock markets.
DP World, the world's fourth largest ocean cargo handler, said in a regulatory filing it remains committed to pursuing the London plan, but is waiting until "an acceptable system" is in place to support a secondary listing.
The stock is already listed on the NASDAQ Dubai, one of two stock exchanges in the Middle East financial hub. Shares fell 4.8 percent to close at 46 cents apiece Monday.
A DP World spokeswoman said the port operator chose to hold off on the London listing until the two Dubai markets are able to link up and test their joint trading platform. That will give DP World time to ensure the trading platform is secure and syncs with the one in London, she said.
DP World does not expect to pursue a London listing until sometime next spring, the spokeswoman said. She spoke on condition of anonymity in line with company policy.
The company now ranks as one of the world's biggest seaport operators, with 49 cargo terminals on six continents. It runs Dubai's Jebel Ali, the Middle East's biggest port, and is developing a new deep-sea container port outside London.
Pirates hijack ship carrying hazardous antifreeze chemical
Pirates hijacked a ship carrying a poisonous chemical used in antifreeze early Monday off the northern tip of Somalia and took the 19 Chinese sailors onboard hostage, officials said.
The Singaporean-flagged Golden Blessing was seized inside the internationally recommended transit corridor in the Gulf of Aden that is patrolled by the anti-piracy naval coalition, said Lt. Col. Per Klingvall, a spokesman for the European Union's anti-piracy force.
All 19 crew are reported to be safe, he said. The ship was reported to be on its way from Saudi Arabia to India.
Office and clerical workers at the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles approved a strike resolution late Tuesday just hours before their current labor contract expires.
The vote comes after a union representing about 900 clerical workers failed to reach an agreement with a coalition of international shipping companies before the July 1 contract expiration.
The parties have been meeting since April 19.
The unit does not represent longshore workers, who are covered under a separate contract that expires in July 2014.
Employers plan to meet with union negotiators today to avoid a walkout, which could disrupt - but not shut down - operations at America's largest port complex.
Dry bulk freight rate pressure to continue into 2011
Dry bulk fleet growth will keep freight rates under pressure into 2011 although there will be seasonal spikes, senior officials with leading ship broker Clarksons said on Tuesday.
Dry bulk freight rates have weakened in recent weeks due to softer demand by China for commodities, including iron ore and coal, and compounded by the pace of ship supply.
Clarksons estimated dry bulk net fleet growth this year around 17 percent versus 10 percent in 2009.
The dry bulk freight market has rebounded from record low levels seen in late 2008 due to economic turmoil which saw average earnings for the larger capesize vessels plummet to just over $2,000 a day, Baltic Exchange data showed. Average capesize earnings reached $24,237 a day on Tuesday.
Port of Long Beach's next fiscal budget down 19 percent
The Port of Long Beach harbor commission approved a $716 million budget, a 19 percent reduction from the previous year.
The fiscal budget, which begins October 1, cuts 12 percent in operating expenses.
The budget includes $474 million for development projects that the port said would support approximately 4,000 jobs in the region, and another $71 million approved for environmental programs such as the development of clean air technologies.
"Despite the global recession, the Port of Long Beach is in a strong financial position," said Port Executive Director Richard D. Steinke.
"But to remain competitive, we must look into the future. We must continue to invest in projects to modernize and ‘green' our operations," he said.
The port forecasts container terminal revenues - three quarters of its overall revenue stream - are expected to rise 4 percent in fiscal year 2011 over its fiscal year 2010 estimate.
The port said it would consider an additional $12 million transfer to the City of Long Beach's Tidelands fund. The port said those funds would likely come out of its capital projects budget.
China Shipping to add $400 per-FEU surcharge July 1
China Shipping Container Lines Co Ltd., China's second-largest cargo-box carrier, intends to impose additional surcharges on transpacific shipping next month due to a global shortage of containers.
The shipping line will charge an "emergency equipment surcharge" at $400 per forty-foot box from July 1, said Zhao Hongzhou, deputy general manger of CSCL yesterday.
The firm has already introduced a peak-season surcharge at the same price on its Asia-Americas routes early from June 1, added Zhao.
AP Moller-Maersk, the world's largest container line, estimated the unprecedented shortage is because of a surge in shipping demand amid the global economic recovery.
CSCL suffered a net loss of RMB 6.49 billion and RMB 1.92 billion in last year and first quarter of this year, respectively. However, the company's profitability is improving because of the growing demand, said Zhao.
China Containers Average Freight Index, a barometer of China's shipping market, has showed a consecutive rise of the container freight price in May.
FRA seeks applications for $2.3 Billion in high-speed rail grants
The U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) announced it would begin accepting applications for $2.1 billion in grants to continue the development of high-speed intercity passenger rail corridors.
In addition, the FRA said it would make another $245 million available for individual construction projects within a corridor.
Funds for both will be made available through the FY 2010 DOT Appropriations Act, the FRA said.
"This important step builds on the $8 billion for high-speed rail that President Obama announced last January," said Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.
Applications and proposals for the latest funds will be due back to FRA by August 6, 2010. The FRA said grant awards are expected to be announced by September 30, 2010.
Gulf spill puts demand, price pressure on Asia shrimp markets
As the Gulf Coast oil spill continues to gush, U.S. seafood suppliers are turning to Asia to ensure Americans have enough shrimp for their gumbos, Creoles and cocktails this summer, but some of those overseas cupboards are low themselves.
Several countries in the world's top shrimp-producing region are struggling to satisfy their own appetites for shrimp because of disease, drought and the economic crisis. The oil spill is one more factor driving prices skyward, sending a worldwide ripple through an already tight shrimp market.
According to Infofish, wholesale shrimp prices have risen by about 15 to 20 percent since a BP-operated oil rig exploded 10 weeks ago, causing an undersea blowout that has spewed millions of gallons of oil into the Gulf.
Thailand has remained a stable supplier, largely unaffected by a virus that has crippled stocks in Bangladesh and Indonesia, the second top supplier to the U.S. last year. For the January-April period before the Gulf oil spill, U.S. imports of Indonesia shrimp were down 30 percent from a year earlier. Imports from Thailand were up about 17 percent over the same period, Infofish data reported.
Port of Longview nets New Jersey-based steel fabricator
Port of Longview commissioners signed a lease Friday with New Jersey-based Skyline Steel to build a $9 million pipe fabrication facility, which is expected to open in February and support 65 family-wage jobs.
Skyline plans to manufacture large spiral-welded and straight-seam steel pipes at the 35-acre site. The pipes will primarily be used in the construction industry, port officials said. Once completed, port officials say the facility will bring in about $100,000 annually to local governments in property tax revenue and about $400,000 annually in rent to the port.
Port of Longview nets New Jersey-based steel fabricator
Port of Longview commissioners signed a lease Friday with New Jersey-based Skyline Steel to build a $9 million pipe fabrication facility, which is expected to open in February and support 65 family-wage jobs.
Skyline plans to manufacture large spiral-welded and straight-seam steel pipes at the 35-acre site. The pipes will primarily be used in the construction industry, port officials said. Once completed, port officials say the facility will bring in about $100,000 annually to local governments in property tax revenue and about $400,000 annually in rent to the port.
Clerical workers on strike at some LA-LB terminals
Clerical workers at several terminals at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach went on strike after their contract expired early Thursday without a new labor agreement, a union spokesman said.
There was no extension when the labor contract elapsed at 12:01 a.m. Thursday, said Stephen Berry, lead negotiator for the Harbor Employers Association which represents 14 [shipping companies] and terminal operators at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.
"We are now on strike," said John Fageaux Jr., president of Local 63 of the 900 member Office Clerical Unit of the International Longshore Warehouse Union. "We tried very hard to get the employers to the table; they refused to do so."
Fageaux said workers at four of the terminals will stay off the job beginning Thursday morning. He said it still hadn't been decided if workers at the remaining terminals would join the strike.
Fageaux said fellow ILWU members, including longshoremen, have historically honored picket lines. That could shut down loading and unloading operations at the twin ports, which account for 40% of all the cargo container traffic coming into the United States and are starting to recover from the recession.
China manufacturing exports to Europe, U.S. slowed in June
Manufacturing growth from China to the euro region and the U.S. slowed in June, suggesting the global export-led recovery is losing strength.
In China, manufacturing growth slowed more than economists forecast, and a gauge of factory output in the 16-member euro region weakened for a second month, two surveys showed. The U.S. Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing index fell more than economists forecast to 56.2 from 59.7 in May.
Asian, U.S. and European stocks fell on concern that a Chinese economic slowdown combined with deepening budget cuts from Spain to the U.K. may undermine the global recovery. While the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development on May 26 raised its global growth forecast for this year, it said that a “boom-bust scenario cannot be ruled out” in some countries.
Major shipping companies have warned that some firms may be forced to quit the UK because of new rules governing how much they pay foreign workers.
Firms including P&O, Stena Line and Maersk have objected to regulations requiring crews based overseas to be paid the same as those in the UK.
They say the government "appears on the verge of encouraging shipping companies to take their business elsewhere".
No government spokesperson was available for comment on Friday.
In an open letter to the Daily Telegraph, senior executives of major cruise, ferry and freight operators said: "As a result of an obscure regulation arising from the Equality Act, many major companies will have little choice but to re-register their ships away from Britain.
Sugar prices may climb 30 percent this year on rising demand for sugar-cane crops in Brazil, said Copersucar SA, a Brazilian cooperative that exports more sugar than Thailand.
“We check fields and weather maps every day, and they tell me prices are rising,” Paulo Roberto de Souza, chief executive officer for Sao Paulo-based Copersucar SA, said yesterday in a telephone interview from Sao Paulo. He said prices could climb to as much as 21 cents a pound this year.
Spot-market demand is measured by longer shipping times in the port of Santos, Brazil, Souza said. He said as traffic increased a ship must wait about a month to load sugar, while normally it would take a week or two. In June, Brazil exported 2.5 million metric tons of sugar, a 12 percent rise over the year-earlier period, the Brazilian Trade Ministry said today.
Can Alaska, with its deep, wide lakes, and sparse population, quench the world’s thirst? An opportunistic American company thinks it can, despite many logistical hurdles and questions about transporting freshwater in bulk across the seas.
The town of Sitka in Southeastern Alaska features a distinctive cobalt jewel: the Blue Lake reservoir, a lake fed by abundant rain, snow and glacial runoff, connected by pipeline to the local deepwater port. For nearly a decade, the town has tried to turn this ample, pure freshwater resource into a commodity for thirsty buyers in the lower 48 states—and even overseas. It has offered contracts to sell up to 9.5 billion gallons a year, or about 8 percent of the reservoir’s volume, to interested buyers at a rate of one cent per gallon.
Several companies have tried and failed to make the venture profitable. But Terry Trapp, a Colorado businessman who is partnering with San Antonio-based S2C Global Systems, believes he may have a willing market in the Middle East.
Trapp’s True Alaska Bottling Company already has a water bottling plant in Sitka and now the partnership, Alaska Resource Management, is trying to be the first company in the world to sell bulk water. It currently has an annual contract for 9.1 million gallons per day—about a third of Sitka’s available water—and is developing hubs to receive ocean-going water ships and distribute water to the Persian Gulf States. S2C Global Systems says the first hub will be an Indian port on the Arabian Sea.
The cost and logistics of shipping, receiving and distributing bulk water are formidable. Trapp says he is looking to ship water in tankers across the oceans, but is also considering floating it in polyethylene bags.
Though no one has attempted to ship this quantity of bulk water before, the possibility of selling off the freshwater of water-rich northern countries has tantalized many. The Canadian government has been embroiled in debates over bulk water projects for years, and the conservative Fraser Institute of Vancouver released a report this month highlighting the benefits of water exports.
But even if Sitka’s water is plentiful and the climate continues to feed the reservoir at a steady rate, others doubt that bulk water will ever be a viable business, because of the challenges created by transporting it long distances.
Rickmers to charter four 13,100-TEU box ships to Maersk
Hamburg-based Rickmers Group christened four 13,100-TEU containerships at Hyundai Heavy Industries’ Ulsan Shipyard on July 2.
All four vessels, with service speed of 24.3 knots, are going on long term, ten-year charter to Denmark’s Maersk Line, joining the world’s largest container-shipping company’s E-Class of mega-ships, Rickmers reported in a statement.
All four ships are to be phased into delivery throughout July and August of this year and will be deployed on Maersk’s new joint service with CMA CGM between Asia and North Europe, Rickmers said. Maersk’s AE8 service will reportedly deploy ten of these mega-box ships size, with each of the partners utilizing five such vessels each.
The port rotation will be Ningbo, Shanghai, Yantian, Tanjung Pelepas, Port Kelang, Le Havre, Hamburg, Rotterdam, Zeebrugge, Port Kelang, Singapore, Ningbo.
Rickmers said four more sister ships are due for delivery in 2011 for the same long term charter to Maersk.
Report: Southern Cal clerks, employers to restart talks
A spokesman for the union that represents striking clerical workers at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach says negotiators have agreed to restart talks with shippers and terminal operators soon.
John Fageaux Jr. says negotiators for both sides could return to the table as early as Friday afternoon, although the talks may not restart until Saturday.
Stephen Berry, a negotiator for the association representing [shipping companies] and terminal operators, confirmed that his group was trying to arrange for another meeting.
Members of the 900-member clerical union struck Thursday morning after their contract expired. They want job protections and a wage increase.
The strike has not shut down the port complex, the nation's busiest.
Major shipping companies have warned that some firms may be forced to quit the UK because of new rules governing how much they pay foreign workers.
Firms including P&O, Stena Line and Maersk have objected to regulations requiring crews based overseas to be paid the same as those in the UK.
They say the government "appears on the verge of encouraging shipping companies to take their business elsewhere".
No government spokesperson was available for comment on Friday.
In an open letter to the Daily Telegraph, senior executives of major cruise, ferry and freight operators said: "As a result of an obscure regulation arising from the Equality Act, many major companies will have little choice but to re-register their ships away from Britain.
Sugar prices may climb 30 percent this year on rising demand for sugar-cane crops in Brazil, said Copersucar SA, a Brazilian cooperative that exports more sugar than Thailand.
“We check fields and weather maps every day, and they tell me prices are rising,” Paulo Roberto de Souza, chief executive officer for Sao Paulo-based Copersucar SA, said yesterday in a telephone interview from Sao Paulo. He said prices could climb to as much as 21 cents a pound this year.
Spot-market demand is measured by longer shipping times in the port of Santos, Brazil, Souza said. He said as traffic increased a ship must wait about a month to load sugar, while normally it would take a week or two. In June, Brazil exported 2.5 million metric tons of sugar, a 12 percent rise over the year-earlier period, the Brazilian Trade Ministry said today.
Can Alaska, with its deep, wide lakes, and sparse population, quench the world’s thirst? An opportunistic American company thinks it can, despite many logistical hurdles and questions about transporting freshwater in bulk across the seas.
The town of Sitka in Southeastern Alaska features a distinctive cobalt jewel: the Blue Lake reservoir, a lake fed by abundant rain, snow and glacial runoff, connected by pipeline to the local deepwater port. For nearly a decade, the town has tried to turn this ample, pure freshwater resource into a commodity for thirsty buyers in the lower 48 states—and even overseas. It has offered contracts to sell up to 9.5 billion gallons a year, or about 8 percent of the reservoir’s volume, to interested buyers at a rate of one cent per gallon.
Several companies have tried and failed to make the venture profitable. But Terry Trapp, a Colorado businessman who is partnering with San Antonio-based S2C Global Systems, believes he may have a willing market in the Middle East.
Trapp’s True Alaska Bottling Company already has a water bottling plant in Sitka and now the partnership, Alaska Resource Management, is trying to be the first company in the world to sell bulk water. It currently has an annual contract for 9.1 million gallons per day—about a third of Sitka’s available water—and is developing hubs to receive ocean-going water ships and distribute water to the Persian Gulf States. S2C Global Systems says the first hub will be an Indian port on the Arabian Sea.
The cost and logistics of shipping, receiving and distributing bulk water are formidable. Trapp says he is looking to ship water in tankers across the oceans, but is also considering floating it in polyethylene bags.
Though no one has attempted to ship this quantity of bulk water before, the possibility of selling off the freshwater of water-rich northern countries has tantalized many. The Canadian government has been embroiled in debates over bulk water projects for years, and the conservative Fraser Institute of Vancouver released a report this month highlighting the benefits of water exports.
But even if Sitka’s water is plentiful and the climate continues to feed the reservoir at a steady rate, others doubt that bulk water will ever be a viable business, because of the challenges created by transporting it long distances.
