World Trade - January 2009 - (Page 10)

TRUCKING AIR OCEAN TECHNOLOGY TRADE FINANCE 3PL WAREHOUSING SUPPLY CHAIN OCEAN Watch drop-off in demand due to the slowing economy. The tentative agreement wo u ld c ove r s o me 4 0 , 0 0 0 employees, including dock workers, drivers, and clerical workers. Neither YRC nor the Teamsters disclosed terms of the tentative agreement. But the company had said previously that it was seeking pay cuts, and Teamsters spokesman Bret Caldwell said the deal focused on pay, pensions and beneﬁts. LA-LB Delays Launch of January 1 Box Fee Port ofﬁcials say they’ll delay a new $15 per container fee that was set to go into effect on January 1 because of the weakening economy and slow pace of approval for new infrastructure projects, reports the Long Beach Press-Telegram. The fee, known as the Infrastructure Cargo Fee, or ICF, was expected to generate more than $200 million in its ﬁ rst year, with money going toward local bridge, highway and rail projects to improve goods movement in Southern California. However, in a unanimous vote, port officials agreed to scale the $15 fee back to $6 and delay implementation until July 1, 2009. ﬂ eets. The system uses Global Positioning Satellite (GPS), wireless and Internet technologies to provide actionable data related to location, speed, direction, starts, stops and other indicators. cargo, test chain of custody procedures and to measure the effectiveness of screening technologies on various commodity classes, the agency said. TRUCKING AIR British Air, Qantas Confirm Merger Talks British Airways and Qantas Airways have confirmed that they are exploring a potential merger via a dual-listed company structure. In the event a deal materializes, Qantas said it would comply fully with its obligations under the Qantas Sale Act and Australia’s international Air Services Agreements. Meanwhile, British Airways conﬁrmed that it is still in discussions with Iberia. Laredo Bridge to Test 24-Hour Operations The World Trade Bridge in L a re do , Tex a s w i l l b e g i n 24-hour operations starting on January 5 in a six-month U.S.-Mexico test program. “The beneﬁt will be seen all up and down the supply chain,” said one ofﬁcial. The World Trade Bridge now crosses about 4,500 trucks per day northbound and about 4,000 southbound. The bridge, manned by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency and Mexico’s customs service, already handles the most cargo of any U.S.-Mexico crossing. L a re do b us i ne s s le ade rs believe about 600 to 800 trucks will shift to nighttime crossings, reducing average waits during daytime periods by onethird to one-half, depending on whether trucks arrive at peak or non-peak periods. It will become effective on January 19, 2009, the day before the current administration leaves ofﬁce. TRADE FINANCE Ex-Im Bank Takes Steps to Help U.S. Exporters The Export-Import Bank of the United States says it has enhanced several of its trade ﬁ nance products to help U.S. exporters in the face of tightening credit in the marketplace. In fact, the head of the WTO warned recently that the financing of global commerce is “deteriorating” amid the financial crisis and the situation is likely to worsen over the coming months. According to the Ex-Im Bank, the new enhancements will increase access to direct lending and working capital loan guarantees. The latter are of critical importance to smalland medium-sized exporters and companies providing goods and services destined for export by other U.S. companies. In addition, the bank will now consider covering warranty letters of credit up to 20 percent of the loan amount or $1.5 million, whichever is lower, for a term of 12 months. This is a tripling of the previous ceiling of $500,000. WT RAIL Port of Tacoma Testing Rail GPS System The Port of Tacoma is testing a satellite system that tracks intermodal containers during their move from the port’s terminals to inland destinations in the Midwest and eastern U.S., reports the Journal of Commerce. The GPS system will allow port intermodal planners to better understand inland rail issues and ultimately, work with railroads and shippers to improve the speed and reliability of freight. The test, which began in June, utilizes a portable tracking device originally designed for truck trailers and vehicle TSA Looking for More Participants in Cargo Screening Test The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is looking for more companies to participate in its Air Cargo Screening Technology pilot program that will evaluate the effectiveness of cargo-screening technologies. Under a federal law passed last year, the TSA must establish a system to screen 50 percent of all cargo transported on passenger aircraft by February 3, 2009, and 100 percent of that cargo by August 3, 2010. TSA’s objectives for the pilot program are to determine abilities to screen high volumes of YRC, Teamsters Reach Deal YRC Worldwide Inc. and the Teamsters announced a deal in late November that the union would provide “economic relief” to YRC, one of the world’s largest trucking companies, which has been struggling with a 10 WORLD TRADE JANUARY 2009

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of World Trade - January 2009

World Trade - January 2009 Contents Supply Chain Finance Conference: The Right Stuff at the Right Time! Is the Dollar's 'Exorbitant Privelege' as the Global Standard at Risk? Supply Chain Watch Tradewinds The Rise of the 4PL An Evolving Tech Backbone Makes 4PL Service More Effective The Changing Landscape of U.S. Railroads Intermodal Grows Up Port of Hamburg Grows as Distribution Point to Eastern Europe Outsourcing Without Fear Measuring the Carbon Footprint

World Trade - January 2009

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