Porti & ambiente — le notizie raccolte

Evacuation operations in the Strait of Hormuz have been paused after an attack on a containership in the besieged waterway yesterday led the IMO to demand safety guarantees remain in place for vessels on the evacuation list. Confirming Evergreen’s 9,500 teuEver Lovelyhad been hit by a projectile, the IMO challenged claims from US officials that the attack took place while the vessel was transiting under UN authorisation. Arsenio Dominguez, secretary-general of the UN agency, said: “This vessel did not transit under IMO’s evacuation framework. I have always reiterated the safety of the seafarers remains paramount.” Evergreen said the ship was 3.6 nautical miles south-east of Oman, on a route recommended by the UK Maritime Trade Operations when it was struck by an unidentified object, starboard of the bridge superstructure. US media blamed the Iranians for the strike, but, at the time of writing, the Iran authorities had neither confirmed nor denied their part in it. Nonetheless, its navy had earlier yesterday warned that vessels evacuating the strait were required to use only routes designated by Iran, and those using other routes would become targets. Vespucci Maritime CEO Lars Jensen noted that while Iran had not provided clarification on which corridors it meant, a corridor through Oman waters had been developed in conjunction with the IMO. Despite the attack, theEver Lovelyremains seaworthy and, together with theEver LotusandEver Unicorn– which transited Hormuz unharmed – is continuing its scheduled route to Singapore’s Port Klang, leaving no Evergreen vessels in the strait. Other vessels have also managed to leave the waterway since the ceasefire MOU between Iran and the US was announced, including Maersk’s 4,500 teuMaersk Baltimore. The IMO had planned to praise the operation with a media call yesterday, but the cancellation of the call meant something had happened with many fearing the worst, but Mr Dominguez has sought to allay concerns by noting that he expected the pause of the evacuation programme to be temporary. He said the decision had been taken “to reconfirm the necessary safety guarantees continue to be in place for the ships on our evacuation list and all those in the region”, but it is unknown how eager box ship operators will be to risk the route. Pointing to the numbers that had taken advantage of the programme, Mr Jensen said it appeared that carriers were being more cautious, with chief analyst at Xeneta Peter Sand suggested they were more concerned with trapped seafarers. He said: “There’s been significant attention on the prospect of the strait reopening, but the data tells a more nuanced story. Over the past seven days, the number of daily transits (of all ship types) has ranged from 22 to 60. ” Wednesday saw seven transits recorded. Only one was inbound to the Arabian Gulf, meaning the industry is still on a mission to bring trapped seafarers out of the region, rather than re-establishing networks.” Mr Sand added that “reconnecting container services requires a fundamentally different risk assessment than one-off transits by other vessel types”. “Carriers need a safe, permanent corridor before they will commit networks and we are not there yet.” Sources approached byThe Loadstarwere playing their cards close to their chest, “monitoring the situation closely”, although there has been scepticism that a full strait reopening was in the near future. Asked what hopes they had for a return to normalcy following news of the ceasefire, one forwarder pointed Israel bombing Beirut and said, “how fucking long did that last?”

In the absence of carrier-led price hikes, container spot rates largely flattened on the transpacific and Asia-Europe trades this week. The one exception was the transpacific Asia-North America west coast trade, which saw a 12% week-on-week increase, according to Drewry’s World Container Index. The WCI’s Shanghai-Los Angeles leg this week finished at $5,750 per 40ft, some 54% higher than the corresponding week in 2025. “Rates remained elevated this week, with standard market levels still pushing above $6,000 per container,” US west coast forwarder Freight Right said. “However, carriers and agents are increasingly making deals or promotional rate structures available, allowing some shipments to move closer to the $5,700–$5,800 range when volume, allocation, or carrier-ratio requirements can be met,” it added. It further explained that “blended deals” – combining lower contracts rates with spot rates in one booking – were being hiked up to the spot market levels by carriers being disciplined over allocations. “To guarantee vessel occupancy while capitalising on high spot rates, carriers are tying low, fixed-contract space of around $3,000 to standard market-rate space. “These ratios have become significantly tougher for forwarders, escalating from a 1:1 requirement to 1:3, 1:4, or even 1:5, effectively dragging the blended deal price closer to the standard spot market,” it said. Meanwhile, there was flatter growth on the WCI’s Shanghai-New York route, which was up 6% week on week, to end at $7,149 per 40ft. According to Drewry’s Container Capacity Insight, only four blanked sailings have been announced on the transpacific for the next week, “reflecting tight capacity” and analysts predicted further rises on both routes next week, due to new general rate increases (GRIs) and new bunker adjustment factors (BAFs) scheduled for 1 July. Today’s Shanghai Shanghai Containerised Freight Index (SCFI) – which records rates quoted for the forthcoming week and, as such, indicate the behaviour of the following week’s WCI (as it did last week) – shows spot rates to both North America east and west coasts climbing 7%. However, with the peak season clearly settling into a fortnightly pattern of sharp carrier-induced prices rise one week, followed by a plateauing the following week, the 7% increase for next week is far gentler than the double-digit hikes seen in May and June, and suggests the market could be nearing a price peak. It could also reflect more capacity coming into the trades – according to Xeneta, this week saw Asia-US west coast capacity up 10.5% on the previous week, up 12.1% on Asia-US east coast and up 11.9% on Asia-North Europe, the largest weekly increases seen since the Strait of Hormuz closed. “It has been a long time coming, but carriers have finally responded to spiralling spot rates and supply chain disruption on major ocean container shipping trades out of Asia by deploying significantly more capacity this week,” said Xeneta chief analyst Peter Sand. “This raises an uncomfortable question from shippers – why has it taken until now for carriers to act when they have endured months of triple-digit freight rate increases and delays in getting containers on board ships?” he added. On the Asia–Europe trades, the WCI’s Shanghai-Rotterdam leg rose 1%, to $4,392 per 40ft, while the Shanghai-Genoa leg was flat, at $5,759 per 40ft. “For shippers, more capacity is always welcome and will help them to get supply chains moving more reliably, but they should not expect this to translate into falling freight rates,” Mr Sand continued. “The only good news for shippers is that the situation is not as bad as it would otherwise have been, with spot rates expected to climb further, heading into July, but with slower growth than recent weeks,” he added. However, sharper increases are expected next week, with today’s SCFI showing a 12% increase on its Shanghai-North Europe base port leg and a 12.5% increase on the corresponding route to the Mediterranean. This would be pushed by new FAK (freight all kinds) levels due for 1 July, in addition to the new BAFs – in one example, CMA CGM new FAK rates of $6,300 per 40ft to North Europe and $7,700–$8,500 to the Mediterranean, as well as a PSS of $1,000 and $1,400 per teu to North Europe and the Mediterranean, respectively.

Poland’s rapid emergence as one of Europe’s largest logistics hubs is cementing its position as a key gateway for international ecommerce, according to LOT Polish Airlines cargo director Michał Grochowski. While Chinese online retailers have dominated headlines in recent years, Mr Grochowski argues Poland’s appeal extends far beyond consumer demand, with investment in warehousing and logistics infrastructure attracting global ecommerce players from multiple markets. “Poland is very, very important on the European map today,” he toldThe Loadstar. “It’s not only because of the consumption.” Instead, he said, Poland’s strength lay in its logistics ecosystem. “We have extremely good education for logistics, but it’s very specified logistics, warehousing logistics,” he explained. “Anyone who does business locally, and ecommerce is one of them, can find big support, with infrastructure for distribution and all these things around.” As a result, he believes Poland has become a more attractive location for fulfilment operations than some of Western Europe’s traditional logistics centres. “Poland is much more welcome for them than, for example, Germany,” he said. “Poland is probably the biggest warehouse facility in Europe today.” Indeed, a recent Maersk report on changing supply chains suggested efforts to “reduce geopolitical exposure” were influencing where production happens. “Companies and governments are reassessing the risks of highly concentrated global supply chains, which may accelerate regional production and nearshoring,” it said. “Central and Eastern European countries could attract increased manufacturing and infrastructure investment due to proximity, political stability and EU integration, following the emergence of Turkey, Morocco, and Egypt as nearshoring centres in recent years.” The Danish carrier added that investment in transport and logistics infrastructure along NATO’s Eastern flank may strengthen connectivity across Europe. It noted that, in the longer-term, the reconstruction of Ukraine could further stimulate infrastructure development and industrial activity across the region, “creating new logistics corridors and production hubs”. Mr Grochowski explained that, contrary to the common perception that cross-border ecommerce is driven almost exclusively by Chinese marketplaces, some of the LOT’s strongest growth came from other regions. “We have extremely good ecommerce from Korea, surprisingly from the United States, and also from Canada.” He added that while low-value Chinese goods continued to generate substantial volumes across Europe, many international shipments carried by LOT consisted of higher-value consumer products, “textiles, shoes, things like this”, he said. Meanwhile, Polish intermodal operator, and part of PSA International,Loconi Intermodal todayannounceda new intermodal terminal in Zbąszynek, expected to be operational in the first quarter of 2028. The facility will be equipped with four handling tracks, a storage yard with a capacity of 4,500 teu, and low-emission equipment, including two electric rubber-tyred gantry cranes. “The investment in Zbąszynek reflects both the sustained growth in maritime cargo flows through Polish ports and the increasing importance of efficient hinterland connections,” said Niels Jakobsgaard Andersen, CEO of Loconi Intermodal. “This new intermodal terminal will strengthen our ability to manage rising volumes, enhance cross-border connectivity… and support customers’ transition to a more sustainable and reliable supply chain solution,” he added. The company noted that this would enable “more flexible freight flows” across Central and Eastern Europe while easing congestion on critical routes.

When DSV revealed it was developing its own technology platform and moving away from CargoWise, many in the freight forwarding industry assumed the move was only possible for the world’s largest forwarder. But according to Kristjan Lillemets, who was chief product officer at Magaya at the time of this interview, DSV’s decision has had a far wider impact than simply prompting speculation over whether more companies might build their own transport management systems. Instead, it has fundamentally changed the questions freight forwarders are asking. “The idea ‘can I take what I consider my secret sauce and do that part myself?’… that’s the chatter we’ve been hearing recently,” Mr Lillemets toldThe Loadstar. Rather than asking whether they should replace their core software altogether, forwarders increasingly want to decide which parts of their business should remain unique and which should continue to be handled by established software providers. “I think everybody is considering moving to more of a combination of ‘I buy the core pieces, but I do want the flexibility to build around it’,” he said. The shift has accelerated as AI develops at extraordinary speed. But while much of the industry’s attention has focused on new AI models and eye-catching demonstrations, Mr Lillemets believes many companies are concentrating on the wrong challenge. “I think the forwarder market and the forwarder software market still has no idea what’s happening with AI,” he said. “The understanding of what was possible nine months ago would be severely outdated today.” That does not mean forwarders should rush to build everything themselves. In fact, Mr Lillemets believes the opposite. “We haven’t seen customers… considering leaving us for an in-house built solution,” he said. “What it has sped up is customers asking ‘I want you to manage our data, I want you to manage our core workflows… but let us build around it’.” The traditional “build versus buy” debate, he argues, is becoming obsolete. Forwarders still need robust systems of record to manage shipments, customs, finance, and compliance. What they increasingly want is the freedom to develop their own AI-driven workflows, integrations, and customer experiences on top of those foundations. “The foundational systems at the bottom still need to be solid,” he said. “The tip of the iceberg is what we see customers build.” The approach appears to be resonating. Following WiseTech’s introduction of CargoWise Value Packs, Magaya has seen increased interest from the market. “We’ve definitely seen more inbound [requests],” said Mr Lillemets. “I think reliability and predictability in a software partner is critical. “It’s not that charging for value is wrong as a concept… but it’s also about execution of these kinds of changes, treating your customers as partners, treating them with respect.” He added: “We’ve seen increased interest since December. Maybe it’s a coincidence.” Yet Mr Lillemets believes the industry’s next challenge will have little to do with software licensing. Instead, it will be deciding how to deploy AI economically. Today’s demonstrations often rely on the largest and most capable language models, but he believes many companies have yet to consider whether that approach is commercially sustainable. “If we all keep using the frontier models for everything, then I think that’s where the ROI question… is going to present itself in a pretty obvious and painful way soon.” In future, software providers and freight forwarders alike will need to decide which tasks genuinely require the most advanced models and which can be handled by smaller, cheaper, or locally deployed alternatives. “It’s all about finding the right capability for the job.” The first applications are already becoming obvious. “If somebody is still looking at a paper or a PDF and punching fields into a form, that is going away.” But eliminating manual data entry is only the beginning. Mr Lillemets believes the greatest gains will come from helping operators decide what deserves their attention each day: identifying risks, recommending actions, highlighting exceptions, and drawing on far more information than any individual could process manually. “We need to be able to dramatically increase… the recommendations of what you should do.” That view is echoed by Australian freight forwarder Neolink, another company investing heavily in automation and AI. Director Sean Crook recently toldThe Loadstarthat, despite the excitement surrounding generative AI, traditional automation had so far delivered the greatest operational benefits. “Automation, to be honest, has probably been even bigger for us than AI,” he said. For Mr Lillemets, the industry’s biggest challenge may ultimately prove to be neither technology nor cost. As AI removes more repetitive work, customers are telling Magaya they are making operators more productive, rather than replacing them. “What they quote is not that ‘I’ve been able to reduce headcount’, but that ‘my operators now are this much more productive’.” The more difficult question is what happens next. If AI increasingly performs the routine tasks that have traditionally taught new recruits the fundamentals of freight forwarding, how does the industry develop the next generation of operators? Indeed, Mr Lillemets pointed to a concern recently raised by logistics adviser Wolfgang Lehmacher: “How is the next generation supposed to learn?” It is a question that may ultimately prove more significant than whether forwarders build or buy their next piece of software.

Containerships hitting the water this week have mostly gone to Far East-Mediterranean and Far East-Indian Subcontinent routes – a sign offirmingcargo volumes and freight rates on these trades. According to Alphaliner, CSSC (Tianjin) Shipbuilding last week delivered the 16,136 teuCMA CGM Cyranoto the French carrier, the third delivery of six sister methanol dual-fuelled vessels commissioned in February 2023 for around $175m each. CMA CGM has deployedCyranoto its Far East-East Mediterranean loop, the BEX2 (aka Phoenician Express), where it joins both its sisters, the rest of which will be completed by the end of the year. Meanwhile, Taiwan operator Wan Hai Lines continues to build on its standalone Far East-Mediterranean service FM1, sending the newly built 8,710 teuWan Hai 902to the route after its delivery from HD Hyundai Samho. Wan Hai 902is the second of four conventionally powered ships ordered in September 2024 for $127m each, and was delivered on 11 June, all the others will be completed by 2027. Launched last September, the FM1 marked Wan Hai’s return to the Far East-Mediterranean route after 16 years, andWan Hai 902will be the 11thship on the service. The deployment of the ywo new box ships on the FM1 represents an upsizing, as the service was initially run with 4,300-5,000 teu ships. Wan Hai’s privately owned associate, Interasia Lines, has been expanding into the China-India lane, and this week took delivery of the 7,092 teuInterasia Ambitionfrom Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding. It will be assigned to Interasia’s China-India ICI service operated with RCL and Wan Hai. This also represents a vessel upsizing, as it replaces the 4,890 teuInterasia Inspirationon the loop currently run with 3,000-7,000 teu ships. To meet high demand on the China-India trade, Maersk Line has deployed the 5,915 teuMaersk Ferrato, lately arrived from Tsuneishi Zhoushan, to fulfil an extra sailing. It’s one of four ships Japanese tonnage provider Nissen Kaiun commissioned in March 2023 for long-term charter to the Danish carrier. Only one newbuilding delivery this week is for the Far East-North Europe trade: Yang Ming took delivery of the 15,500 teuYM Wayfinderfrom HD Hyundai Heavy Industries. One of five sister units ordered in 2024,YM Wayfinder(pictured above) will be deployed to the Premier Alliance’s FE3 service, operated with MSC. Due to only a few ultra-large ships being ordered in 2023-2024, not many newbuildings have been assigned to the Far East-North Europe lanes.

As opposition mounts against Hapag-Lloyd’s (HL) $4.2bn takeover of Zim’s international shipping business, could the Israeli government be about to scupper the deal? Its share price movement – or lack thereof in the mid-$20 area; at a steep near-30% discount against HL’s $35/share cash offer – clearly indicates that the transaction continues to hang in the balance. As we know… Hapag-Lloyd and the Israeli investment fund FIMI’s joint offer would carve up Zim – with the German carrier taking on its international business ...

Whether Expeditors is being prepped for takeover or not, we hear structural corporate changes are surely taking place – apart from (or because of?!) targeted layoffs that so far have been disclosed in its tech department. Incidentally

FedEx has set up a dedicated unit to handle its healthcare traffic, hoping this will draw investors more than improved results. When FedEx unveiled its results for the final quarter of its fiscal 2026, ending 31 May, the integrator’s top brass were happy to table results ahead of projections from Wall Street. Revenues in the Q4 were up 12.5% year on year, to $25.01bn, compared with projections of $24.04bn, and full-year revenue reached $94.7bn, up from $87.9bn the previous fiscal year. Moreover, average daily volume in the fourth quarter was up 2%, while revenue per package jumped 11%, validating management’s course of steering away from low-margin volume traffic to higher-yielding business – Ground Economy volume shrank about 5% in the quarter. “The momentum you’re seeing across our business is proof that our strategy is working,” CEO Raj Subramaniam told analysts. “It’s translating to favourable financial outcomes, including very strong free cash flow and FY26 results that far exceeded our initial outlook.” Still, investors were not impressed. Shares fell 6% after the earnings call and analysts pointed to the fact that the operating margin was down to 8.4% in the quarter, versus 9.1% a year earlier. Investors might have been more pleased with the announcement during the investor call that FedEx had set up a dedicated organisation to cater for healthcare and pharmaceutical business. According to chief customer officer Brie Carere, this will further strengthen FedEx’s ability to support complex, time-critical and highly regulated healthcare supply chains. FedEx Life Sciences marks another step in the company’s pursuit of the sector, part of the strategy to focus on high-yield traffic, and builds on a network of life science centres in Europe and Asia-Pacific. In FY26 the integrator grew its revenue in this segment to nearly $10bn, up from $9bn in the previous fiscal year. Meanwhile, rival UPS has also expanded in this segment. For the 2025 fiscal year it posted $11.2bn in healthcare revenues, compared with $10.5bn a year earlier. Management has set its sights on reaching $20bn in this arena. The company announced one step in that direction this week with a $48m investment in its cold chain infrastructure supporting healthcare traffic. The money goes to 27 temperature-controlled cross-dock facilities in the US, Europe, Asia and the Americas. According to UPS, these facilities comply with CEIV Pharma standards and are supported by a 24/7/365 control tower designed to monitor shipments and cope with disruptions. “We’re seeing a growing mix of higher-value, temperature-sensitive, and time-critical healthcare products that require more precision and control across the supply chain,” said Kiel Harkness, VP of healthcare strategy Dedicated air service appears to be another rising element in this equation. Last September, FedEx announced plans for a flight between Dublin and Indianapolis to move healthcare products and other high-value goods, claiming this would shorten transit times by a day. In February, DHL unveiled a B777 freighter branded ‘DHL Health Logistics’ to mark management’s decision to move a greater portion of its healthcare traffic on dedicated freighters and reduce its reliance on commercial airlines. The 777F links Brussels and Cincinnati. DHL signalled plans to field more such services, targeting dedicated routes in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and Latin America to form a core element of the integrator’s Airfreight Cold Chain Network. Among the countries earmarked for the expansion are India, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Brazil, the US, Germany, and Ireland. All three big integrators have strengthened their presence in the healthcare logistics sector in recent years with strategic acquisitions. In light of their increased focus on high-yield traffic, this trend is bound to continue – while B2C e-commerce is not likely to see much effort to up their profile.