A trainload of 1600 tonnes of biomass pellets was the first shipment rolled out from the new bulk terminal of port of Liverpool that was completed in early October 2015. The shipment of 25 wagons
was despatched on October 26th for delivery at the Drax Power Station in Yorkshire.
The First Trainload From Liverpool’s New Bulk Terminal
Growth in Air Freight Rates
As per Drewry Sea and Air Shipper Insight, the average rate for air freight is still showing an upward trend during September ($ 3.22/Kg) since its lowest rate in June 2015 ($ 2.86/Kg). However the rates are still lower than the same period last year. As per consultants, the trend would remain upward for the remaining months of the year considering the peak season for end of the year but the same high rates of average $3.92/Kg of November 2014, is not to be expected and acheived.
Europe’s Largest Parcel Hub in Leicestershire
DPD officially opened the Europe’s largest and most technically advanced parcel sorting hub in Hinckley, Leicestershire. The £100 million state-of-the-art giant new superhub is capable of sorting 720,000 parcels per night and will be fully operational ahead of this year’s Black Friday and Christmas peak period.
During the opening ceremony, DPD was presented with the Queen’s Award for Enterprise by HM Lord-Lieutenant of Leicestershire, Jennifer, Lady Gretton JP, on behalf of Her Majesty the Queen.
“The superhub is way beyond anything else in the UK and gives us significant scope to expand in the next few years. We’ve been consistently investing in our network and growing our capacity for some time now to ensure we stay well ahead of the increasing demand for DPD’s services.” DPD’s CEO, Dwain McDonald.
Port of Felixstowe to Add Ship-to-Shore Gantry Cranes
As reported, three new ship-to-shore gantry cranes, built by ZPMC, have been delivered to the Port of Felixstowe for operations on berths No. 8 and 9 that are being extended for hosting two of the latest ULCS simultaneously. The cranes are of 70m outreach (24-wide), 64t SWL, 35m rail span and 49.5m lift height. As per Felixstowe officials, the lift height is sufficient to stack10-high deck stows at all states of the tide.The new cranes are equipped with driver aids and are designed to work with tandem-lift spreaders allowing two 40fts to be handled at the same time. The driver aids include partial automation of the loading cycle to reduce strain on the drivers and to increase productivity.
The cranes will be commissioned over the next few weeks and the extended terminal will be operational during the fourth quarter this year as per 
Clemence Cheng, Chief Executive Officer of the Port of Felixstowe.
Shortages of vehicle distribution capacity across Europe
The second quarter of the year has once again ended with serious capacity shortage in most of the markets. As per ECG (Belgian based Association of European Vehicle Logistics); crisis resources lag the market and investment is insufficient.
Although the automotive sector is seeing both volumes and market confidence increasing across Europe, the FVL (finished vehicle logistics) industry is under significant pressure. The latest ECG Confidence & Cost Trend Survey (that is conducted regularly amongst ECG members ) shows operations at maximum capacity. Further investment is urgently needed to meet the increasing needs of the expanding market as the current financing is not sufficient for the growing demand.
“Despite increasing confidence in future volumes, ever tighter margins and short term contracts mean the industry is still not investing in extra capacity. Worse still, in many places the transporter fleet continues to age, and this despite plenty of production capacity at the trailer and truck manufacturers.” ECG’s Executive Director, Mike Sturgeon.
Fall in Air Freight Demands
As per IATA (The International Air Transport Association), global air freight markets showing a fall in air cargo demand in July compared to the same month last year. The data released by IATA shows 0.6% FTK (freight tonne kilometers) fall in air freight volumes which is in line with weaker global economic growth.
The decline was broad-based across all regions with the exception of Africa and the Middle East. However t
he most pronounced falls were in the Americas, where international FTK volumes were down more than 5% compared to July 2014.
“The recent stock-market turmoil shows that investors have real fears about the strength of the global economy. And the disappointing July freight performance is symptomatic of a broader slowdown in economic growth. The combination of China’s continued shift towards domestic markets, wider weakness in emerging markets, and slowing global trade indicates that it will continue to be a rough ride for air cargo in the months to come,” said Tony Tyler, IATA’s Director General and CEO.
APM Terminals to Buy Grup Maritim TCB
APM Terminals (Maersk’s Terminal operator) and Perez y Cia (Shipping and Logistics company) have come to an agreement to transfer majority of stakes in the Barcelona based Grup Maritim TCB and its Europe and Latin America container terminal portfolio to Maersk’s Terminal operator.This will add 11 Grup Maritime TCB’s terminals to APM terminals which includes annual throughput capacity of 4.3 million TEUs.The transaction is expected to close by the year-
end according to APM terminal.
18K TEU French Flag in CMA CGM Service
CMA CGM’s Bouganville who was named after the First French Captain who led the French official world tour in 18th Century, has been put into service as the largest box ship of French flag. CMA CGM Bouganville with its length of 400 m and width of 54 m is the fourth 18000 TEU box ship in the company’s series which is the largest sailing under French flag following rotation of Asia French line. The Ship is scheduled to call at Shanghai on September 5th followed by Port Kelang, Suez and Algeciras and then to 
arrive at Le Havre on October 5.
More Mergers For Chinese Shipping
Following the merger of two largest Chinese state owned shipping companies that was ordered by the Chinese government on August, the amalgamation of Chinese shipping continues with another merger for CMES (China Merchants Energy Shipping) and Sinotrans and CSC group for their operations. The recent merger orders have been part of the reform plan of Chinese government for its state owned shipping sector. As per Drewry consultancy, these mergers might have contagion effect on the existing carrier alliances and further carrier mergers in Asia, damaging industry competition.
New Panama Canal Completion Would Not Be Affected by Crack
As confirmed by the ACP authorities the opening of the Cocoli locks which is located in Pacific side of the new Panama Canal expansion project would not be affected by the recent discovered crack.
As per ACP analysis, the US$ 5.8 billion project is at its 93 percent completion rate and the canal authority would not accept the project until all necessary repairs are conducted by the project contractor GUPC.
