At a recent Friday meeting at one East Coast port, a top port official told that the line of trucks picking up inbound boxes was far larger than normal, with cargo receivers seemingly bracing for a potential shutdown at the end of the month, reports Seatrade Maritime.
This observation aligns with the warnings issued by shipping lines to their customers. Ocean Network Express (ONE) is urging cargo owners to collect containers by September 30 and cautioning that ports have advised that reefer containers will not be monitored during a shutdown.
Cancelling port calls
In an effort to deliver containers before any shutdown, ONE is canceling port calls on five services into the US East Coast in the coming days and arranging for cargo to be discharged at alternative ports. ONE has strongly recommended picking up the cargo at alternate discharging ports before October 1, 2024.
Complicated matters
Further complicated matters is the ILA insistence that terminal operators limit their pursuit of automated cargo handling. Bulk cargo generally would not be affected by ILA labour actions.
Economic analysts are also weighing in regarding the potential costs of work stoppages at East Coast and Gulf Coast ports. One analyst, Oxford Economics, referred to the daily cost of a strike exceeding $1 billion, and noted that ripple effects from an extended strike of two weeks duration would disrupt supply chains out into 2025.
The looming US elections on November 5 are adding to the urgency. So far, neither the Democratic candidate, Kamala Harris, nor her Republican opponent, Donald Trump, have commented on the situation.
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Source: Seatrade Maritime
