ILWU & PMA reach agreement on contract
The International Longshore Warehouse Union (ILWU) and the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) reached a tentative agreement on June 14 on a six-year contract, bringing peace to West Coast ports. Prior to reaching the agreement, our agents were reporting vessel backups due to ILWU work disruptions, especially in LA/LB and SeaTac. Since the agreement, the disruptions have stopped, but there could still be delays in receiving some of your imports. FYI, many importers are still re-routing their shipments to Gulf and East Coast ports.
Slow steaming on the rebound (multiple sources)
We are getting reports from multiple sources that the steamship companies are returning to slow steaming not only to save fuel, but to effectively reduce excess capacity as new, mega-ships come on line in the next 18 – 24 months. While rates have come down significantly over the last year or so, slow steaming will effectively decrease capacity, but at the same time, shippers will experience MUCH longer transit times. We urge you make the necessary adjustments in your supply chain.
Customs publishes forced labor entity list (Federal Register, June 12, 2023
Please find attached the list from the FR, pages 38082-3, in Appendix 1. I have marked the relevant sections for your convenience.
What to Do about Receiving Old Invoices from Shipping Lines (From NCBFAA)
Many NCBFAA members [and importers] are complaining about receiving old invoices from ocean carriers, in some cases with dates of more than a year old. While the charges may or may not be valid, this should qualify as an unreasonable practice under 41102(c) of the Shipping Act for failure to invoice timely.
The NCBFAA NVOCC Subcommittee suggests that anyone who wants to dispute such invoices first try to reason with the ocean carrier and, failing that, can use one of the dispute processes available through the FMC. Please contact us if you need to use one of these dispute processes.