Weekly Logistics Briefing Key logistics updates for the week (Week 2 of Nov 2024)

Cargo operations at Latin America’s largest air cargo gateway, Sao Paulo’s Guarulhos Airport (GRU), are on the verge of a meltdown. Video footage of the airport shows warehouses overflowing with cargo and rows of pallets outside, some occupying aircraft parking positions. Airline groups (The Brazilian Association of Airlines, Latin American Air Transport Association and Board of Airline Representatives International Airlines in Brazil) are appealing to the federal government to impose emergency measures, including a five-day embargo for dry cargo, in a last-ditch effort to avert the collapse of cargo traffic at the airport. In addition to the embargo, the airline interest groups want the immediate establishment of a task force of employees from involved authorities that should work with Guarulhos Airport, which holds the concession to manage the airport, to unclog the system and normalise entry and exit flows of cargo and baggage. To normalise operations at GRU, it would be essential to enable bonded truck operations to take cargo to other airports for customs procedures, the authors wrote. The associations claim the disastrous situation is the result of “lack of labour at the dealership, combined with slowness and bureaucracy in the processes, including by government bodies such as ANVIS (National Health Surveillance Agency), Federal Revenue and VIGIAGRO (Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock)”.

Dockworkers at the Port of Montreal started a new strike last Thursday (October 31) morning, forcing the indefinite shutdown of two container terminals at the country’s second biggest port. Strike terminals are Viau and Maisonneuve. Dockworkers have been without a collective agreement since December. 31, 2023, with issues including salaries, scheduling and work-life balance at the heart of negotiations. Three-day strike at the same two container terminals from Sepember30 07:00 to October 3 07:00 and workers refused to work overtime shifts since October 10. A 24-hour work stoppage on Sunday (October 27).

The General Directorate of Traffic (DGT) has implemented extraordinary control measures, restricting vehicle movement to and from Valencia and its metropolitan area. Except for necessities, vehicles can only be moved between 22:00 and 07:00 local time. This restriction limits operational transport capacity and affects access to Valencia ports and container depots. As of November 4, traffic around Barcelona port is only allowed between 00:00 and 14:00.

Smog and administrative issues have caused significant disruptions in flight operations, leading to the cancellation of six flights and delays for 29 others. Flights from Lahore to Riyadh were canceled, while flights to Multan and Faisalabad were delayed due to smog. Delays were reported for flights from Faisalabad to Dubai and Karachi to Dubai, with wait times of three hours and two and a half hours, respectively. Flight operations in several areas remain affected due to poor visibility caused by smog.

In response to escalating post-election unrest, Mozambique's Maputo port has temporarily ceased accepting cargo. The unrest, stemming from disputed election results, has led to significant disruptions in trade between Mozambique and South Africa. The Southern African Development Community (SADC) plans to address the crisis in an upcoming meeting scheduled for mid-November. Additionally, the South African Border Management Authority has temporarily closed the Lebombo border post with Mozambique due to security concerns arising from the violence.

Hamburg port operator HHLA is in the process of completely replacing 14 cranes at the CTA terminal used since 2002. Recently, the congestion of the CTA terminal has increased to about 80-85%, limiting the handling of export containers in the terminal. Accordingly, HHLA is implementing temporary measures to restrict the import of export cargo to certain ships. Large shipping companies such as Hapag-Lloyd gave up entering Hamburg and changed to Wilhelmshafen port instead. HHLA intends to alleviate congestion through distributed deployment of ships between terminals, and temporarily introduce countermeasures such as container storage by utilizing external storage facilities.

Railway workers from major labor unions in Italy will go on strike for eight hours nationwide from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on November 5. The strike is aimed at protesting the recent stabbing of a train conductor at Rivarolo Station.

A cargo barge, Yuzhou Qihang, previously involved in a crane collapse at Taiwan's Keelung Port on October 14, 2024, ran aground off Taiwan's northern coast on October 31 due to rough sea conditions caused by Typhoon Kong-Rey. All 17 crew members were safely rescued by the Taiwan Coast Guard Administration, and no oil spills have been reported. The barge had been en route to China's Fujian province when it encountered the adverse weather. Earlier, the Yuzhou Qihang had struck a gantry crane at Keelung's Pier 20, leading to its collapse and causing an estimated NT$300 million (US$9.3 million) in damages.

Unionized ground freight workers are scheduled to go on strike nationwide from November 4 to 5. Workers are blaming the worsening situation and problems in the transportation sector, and strikes are likely to cut off supply chains nationwide.

On October 31, 2024, a fire broke out in the engine room of the Turkish-registered general cargo vessel FG Sevil while it was en route from Yalova to Burgas, Bulgaria. The incident occurred in the Sea of Marmara, east of Istanbul, near Sedef Island. The Directorate General of Coastal Safety (KEGM) dispatched rescue vessels, including the KEGM-4 and tugs Kurtarma 7 and Sark, to assist. Twenty-three individuals—comprising 17 crew members and eight shipyard workers—were safely evacuated. Tragically, two personnel were found unresponsive in the engine room and were later declared deceased. The FG Sevil was subsequently towed to a secure anchorage, and authorities have initiated an investigation into the cause of the fire.