Industry Insights

In honor of Memorial day, our offices will close at 3:00PM on Friday, May 22nd. We will remain closed on Monday, May 25th and will resume normal business hours on Tuesday, May 26th. We would like to take this time to remember the brave men and women that gave their lives while defending and maintaining our freedoms.

After great anticipation, we are pleased to announce that the Census Bureau’s International Trade Management Division (ITMD) published the Final Rule on Friday, May 15, 2015. This new rule, which revises the Foreign Trade Regulations (FTR), Title 15, Part 30, finalizes the interim rule without change. The final ruling reinstates the previous filing exemptions in Sections 30.37(q) and (r) of the FTR for temporary exports, which includes ATA Carnets and goods that were imported under a Temporary Import Bond (TIB). Please note that these exemptions may only be used if filing is not specifically required per Section 30.2(a)(1)(iv) of the FTR. In March […]

Though the crisis on the West Coast has passed (to some degree), congestion at U.S. ports remains a pressing issue – one that is only going to get worse without a substantial improvement to port logistics and capacity. The Port of Virginia is an excellent case in point. Built to handle large volumes of cargo, the port was having trouble in late April processing a surge of containers from three large ships at dock, a report from The Wall Street Journal says. The overload resulted in a mile-long backup for truckers to enter the terminal and a 13-lane wide, 10-truck […]

According to a statement released by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, port drivers in Long Beach and Los Angeles ended their strike after picketing last Monday through early Friday over low wages and employee status. Drivers were from Intermodal Bridge Transport (IBT), Pacer Cartage, Harbor Rail Transport (HRT), and Pacific 9 Transportation, who were the last to remain on strike. “We have millions of dollars in claims for wage theft against the company and we refuse to give up our fight,” Byron Contreras, a driver leader at Pac 9 said in a statement. “But we need to feed our families, […]

A week from tomorrow marks the end of the final one-year limited liquidated damage (LD)/”three strikes” phase of a six-year evolution of ISF enforcement. In summary, here is what will change: CBP Ports, who will continue to have flexibility in their processes, may commence issuing LD without HQ review and approval. Ports will no longer be under HQ mandate to issue three warnings before assessing LD. Craig Clark is replaced by Peyman Jamshidi as Program Manager, Cargo and Conveyance Security, Office of Field Operations, CBP. CBP is conducting a “last educational outreach” via Webinar later today. Because this event reached maximum […]

Shippers, whether carrying hazardous cargo or not, could become liable for pollution or other environmental incidents. Having the right insurance in place is crucial. Just this week, the cargo ship M/B Marathassa was released under escort after having been found spilling thousands of liters of bunker fuel into English Bay in Canada. The Cyprus-flagged ship was on its maiden voyage when a mechanical failure caused the fuel discharge in early April. A collision in the fog in Houston in March caused another large chemical spill with potential for air and water contamination. A collision or any other incident that causes […]