DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

Groups representing big rail shippers said Thursday’s tentative railroad-labor contract avoids potential turmoil in their supply chains and they are hoping for rapid ratification by union members to fully ease the labor tensions. “We are relieved and cautiously optimistic that this devastating nationwide rail strike has been averted,” said National Retail Federation President and Chief Executive Matthew Shay. The tentative deal must now be ratified by members of the various unions covered by the contracts. The deal, which is retroactive to 2019, includes a 14.1% wage increase upon ratification. Still, the agreement may help improve rail service in operations that have been hit by capacity and staffing shortages, he wrote.

☆ Rail Shippers Brace for Potential National Strike
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-14 | by ( Paul Berger | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +6 min

Companies from food suppliers in the Midwest to retail importers across the U.S. are bracing for a potential national rail strike by seeking alternative transport to keep their supply chains running. Tens of thousands of American workers are on strike and thousands more are attempting to unionize. “We believe the potential for a rail work stoppage is growing,” Citi’s Christian Wetherbee wrote in a research note Wednesday. Other shippers will have to hold on to cargo if the rail network shuts down. U.S. railroads hauled more than 18,000 carloads of grains over the past week, according to the Association of American Railroads.

The Sinaloa and Jalisco organizations have taken over from Chinese sellers as a dominant source of the potent synthetic opioid, a leading cause of the U.S.’s record overdoses. Among the reasons, it is easier and less expensive to produce than heroin.

☆ West Coast Port Labor Contract Talks Remain in Limbo
▼ + stars: | 2022-07-01 | by ( Paul Berger | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +3 min

Long-stalled West Coast port labor talks are showing no signs of progress, according to people familiar with the negotiations, extending uncertainty for U.S. retailers who rely on the coast to import goods from Asia. Some importers have been diverting furniture, clothes and electronics to East Coast and Gulf Coast ports in case the labor talks break down and lead to work disruptions or a strike. He said many retailers will likely plan to continue diverting goods to Gulf Coast and East Coast ports until they can be sure an agreement can be reached. There has been little impact on cargo operations at the ports during the contract talks beyond sporadic work disruptions at container terminals in Los Angeles and in Washington. People familiar with the talks say the sides are hung up on issues related to work in Seattle.

☆ Southern California’s Notorious Container Ship Backup Ends
▼ + stars: | 2021-04-07 | by ( Paul Berger | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +5 min

The backup of container ships off Southern California’s coast that was at the heart of U.S. supply chain congestion during the Covid-19 pandemic has effectively disappeared. But the biggest gain likely has come from fewer boxes reaching the busiest U.S. seaport complex for container imports. By January 2022, only 31% of container ships arrived at ports on time, down from about 70% before the pandemic, according to Sea-Intelligence. By September 2021, the average cost for shipping a container from Asia to the U.S. West Coast exceeded $20,000, a sixfold increase from a year earlier, according to the Freightos Baltic Index. Last week, the average cost to ship a container from Asia to the U.S. West Coast had declined 84% from a year earlier to $2,720.

Search resuls for: "Paul Berg"

5 mentions found