Welcome to Freight Forward, where each Monday, I’ll recap what happened in supply chains the previous week through JOC.com articles and additional sources and also what to expect for the week ahead.
I’m Cathy Roberson, a supply chain writer and researcher. For this weekly series, I serve as a research analyst for the Journal of Commerce (JOC), for whom I identify trends, provide thoughts and input into stories, and assist with air express and parcel last-mile queries.
- The shock waves from are rippling from ports in Asia and Europe through freight docks deep in industrial America writes Bill Cassidy. Given the chaotic rollout of President Donald Trump’s trade policies, the outlook for the US freight economy in the second half of 2025 is uncertain that is crippling shippers’ ability to plan according to Bill.
JOC's Breakbulk 25
- Natznet Tesfay, Economic and geopolitical analyst for S&P Global told the Journal of Commerce’s Breakbulk and Project Cargo Conference participants that S&P Global’s base expectation is “subdued economic growth,” which would likely keep global container volumes from expanding. But the likelihood of the United States, Canada and much of Europe entering a technical recession this year, defined as two straight quarters of GDP retraction, is rising as uncertainty around US tariffs mounts, writes Mark Szakonyi.
- Adapting to the unexpected while resisting knee-jerk reactions will be key to navigating a series of market uncertainties that include constant changes to US tariff policy, geopolitical tensions and labor strikes, a panel of project cargo logistics managers told attendees, writes Autumn Cafiero Giusti.
“Don’t get comfortable. It’s always changing,” said John MacDonough, construction logistics manager for the Woodfibre LNG project in British Columbia.
- Large energy projects are being paused due to tariff concerns, but that could lead to a robust second half of 2025 for the project cargo sector if shippers feel more certainty about trade policy in the months ahead writes Eric Johnson.
“There’s just general uneasiness and we’ve noticed that in terms of [requests for quotes] we’re seeing,” said Jake Swanson, regional vice president of DHL Industrial Projects.
- The unknowns surrounding ship fees are forcing owners to take a wait-and-see approach to ordering new vessels. Pieter Flohil, managing director with Dutch MPV/HL operator Spliethoff, said the company has been looking to expand its fleet but has put those plans on pause amid concerns over US tariff policy and proposed ship fees writes Autumn Cafiero Giusti. Only eight MPV/HL ships are not Chinese-owned noted Autumn in her article.
Ocean Freight
- Should the United States be building commercial ships at scale? Peter Tirschwell offers a great analysis in an attempt to answer this question.
- Sources tell the Journal of Commerce the typical timeline for the signing of annual service contracts between ocean carriers and importers in the eastbound trans-Pacific, most of which begin May 1, has been delayed by at least two weeks because of confusion over how tariffs in general, and the trade war between Washington and Beijing specifically, will affect commerce over the next 12 months writes Bill Mongelluzzo.
- US importers are securing bonded warehousing in Canada to store freight from China and temporarily avoid paying hefty tariffs on the goods in the hopes the levies are significantly eased before those products need to be in the US writes Laura Robb.
- CMA-CGM became the majority shareholder in Santos Brasil with a 51% stake after its $1 billion purchase of a 47.9% interest from fund management company Opportunity was approved by Brazil’s regulatory authorities writes Keith Wallis. CMA CGM already held a 3.1% share in the terminal operator that it bought in September.
- Bloomberg - CMA CGM Acquires Turkish Logistics Company for $440 Million
Freight Forwarding
- Kuehne + Nagel reported a good Q1. CEO Stefan Paul told analysts that K + N’s ocean freight volume out of Asia would not collapse amid the decline in China-US demand because it would be largely replaced by demand shifting to other markets, notably Southeast Asia writes Greg Knowler.
- Transport Topics - AIT Acquires Miami-Based Forwarder Gsdmia
Air
- Qatar Airways Cargo (Qatar Cargo), IAG Cargo and Malaysian Airlines’ air freight division MASkargo announced last week their intention to launch a trilateral partnership subject to regulatory approval writes Greg Knowler.
- Freighter slots at the Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) will be suspended beginning mid-August for extensive infrastructure upgrades, posing a threat to India’s air freight supply chains writes Bency Mathew.
- AJOT - DHL expands next-day Medical Express service and clinical trial platform
Inland
- Knight-Swift Transportation and Union Pacific Railroad (UP), during their respective first-quarter earnings calls this week, said it is important to be nimble with capacity if there is a significant decline in volume crossing the docks at Los Angeles and Long Beach writes Ari Ashe.
- Amazon earlier this month launched an LTL service for vendors shipping goods to the company’s fulfillment and distribution centers writes Bill Cassidy. “I actually see it as an opportunity for us to help them with their logistics needs,” said president of Old Dominion Freight Line, Marty Freeman. “If their suppliers need to pick up the same day, we certainly cover [the contiguous] 48 states and we’re able to help them out with that.”
Parcel
That's it for now. Thank you for reading! For readers interested in reading more Journal of Commerce stories, click here to subscribe. Enter code FFNL20 at checkout to receive a 20% discount on any subscription option. (Note that this is only for first-time subscribers or for upgrading a current subscription). What did I miss? Have a question? Let me know in the comments. I’ll be checking back throughout the week to answer questions, address comments, and share additional insights. In the meantime, here’s wishing everyone a good freight week ahead.
