|
Looking For A Career with Cornerstone?
Send resume to
careers@cornerstone-systems.com
|
|
Water Cooler Trivia
Completely useless but fun...
Torn Between Presidential Candidates?
Need help deciding?
After you get your results....do you agree with them? Have some fun, take a minute, and start the discussion.
iSideWith is not affiliated with any political party, candidate, or interest group.
|
|
|
|
|
Greetings!
Industry updates are important to all of us. If you would like to receive an update on a topic not listed in this issue or receive more information on Cornerstone Systems, please contact us at 800-278-7677 or visit our website at www.cornerstone-systems.com.
|
|
Port Tracker Forecasting "Near Peak" Levels in Sept
Growth on West Coast Stronger Than East Coast
|
| |
2016 Overall Forecast Up 1.6%
West Coast Ports Forecasting 2.3%
|
In light of the recent bankruptcy filing by Hanjin Shipping, United States-bound retail imports are expected to be at near-peak levels in September, according to the most recent edition of the Port Tracker report issued late last week by the National Retail Federation (NRF) and maritime consultancy Hackett Associates.
The ports surveyed in the report include: Los Angeles/Long Beach, Oakland, Tacoma, Seattle, Houston, New York/New Jersey, Hampton Roads, Charleston, and Savannah, Miami, and Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based Port Everglades. Authors of the report explained that cargo import numbers do not correlate directly with retail sales or employment because they count only the number of cargo containers brought into the country, not the value of the merchandise inside them, adding that the amount of merchandise imported provides a rough barometer of retailers' expectations.
"Hanjin should not significantly affect volume for the month since alternative arrangements to unload those containers or shift cargo elsewhere should be dealt with by the time the numbers are tallied," NRF Vice President for Supply Chain and Customs Policy Jonathan Gold said in a statement. "But millions of dollars worth of merchandise is in limbo at the moment, and retailers are working hard to make sure it ends up on store shelves in time for the holidays." For July, the most recent month for which data is available, total volume was 1.63 million Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEU), which was up 3.2 percent from June and up 0.7 percent ahead of July 2015.
August, which is traditionally the highest import month of the year, was pegged at 1.67 million TEU for a 0.4 percent annual decrease. September imports are expected to hit 1.62 million TEU, which would be down 0.2 percent, with October at 1.63 million TEU, which is a 5.3 percent increase. November is calling for a 3.8 percent gain at 1.53 million TEU, with December and January at 1.49 million TEU (a 3.6 percent increase) and 1.53 million TEU (a 2.8 percent increase), respectively.
For all of 2016, Port Tracker is calling for a 1.8 percent annual increase at 18.6 million, ahead of a previous estimate of 1.6 percent annual growth. The first half of 2016 came in at 9 million TEU for a 1.6 percent annual increase.
Hackett Associates Founder Ben Hackett wrote in the report that despite the apparent slowdown in economic activity being reported around the world, the volume of imports continues to grow slowly and along the lines of his firm's projections. "Growth on the West Coast is stronger with the forecast for 2016 projecting a 2.3 percent increase in imports and a total of 12.20 million TEUs, with Los Angeles/Long Beach showing slightly better growth at 2.7 percent," Hackett wrote in the report. "The East Coast is significantly weaker with a projected 0.6 percent increase over 2015, bringing the total to 8.17 million TEUs and suggesting that the West Coast is re-gaining its market share despite the increased number of services via the expanded Panama Canal. Growth in a world of declining economic indicators is the same conundrum that we pointed out last month. We expect growth to continue into 2017 at similar lackluster levels unless the election in November puts a wrench in the works."
|
|
In the News!
Cornerstone Systems Receives Honors
Memphis Business Journal's
"Top 100 Private Companies"
SupplyChainBrain
"2016 Great Supply Chain Partner"
Congratulations!
|
|
Transportation Industry News
 | | Industry News |
November Set for West Coast Labor & Management to Discuss Contract Extension - (9/27/16)
The Pacific Maritime Association and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union have targeted November 1 and 2 for talks to address a potential contract extension. Both groups have been under pressure to work on the extension because of their past labor dispute that disrupted truck and port operations early in 2015. The current deal is good through July 2019.
U.S. DOT: NAFTA Freight Takes a Huge Hit in July - (9/23/16)
The U.S. Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics reports that in July trucks moved nearly 65 percent of all the international freight - with trains, planes, ships and pipelines picking up the rest. Rail freight was the only mode to experience an increase year-to-date. The value of freight hauled across the borders decreased by nearly 10 percent compared with June when freight was up more than 3 percent from the previous month. July marks the largest month-to-month decrease for the year. Compared to July 2015, freight was down 10 percent, the largest year-to-year decrease in 2016. Year-to-year, NAFTA freight was down every month in 2015. Trucks were responsible for more than $54 billion of the $83.7 billion of imports and exports in July. Rail came in second with nearly $13 billion.
Hanjin-Related Struggles Continue to Affect Supply Chain -(9/22/16)
Concerns related to the recent bankruptcy filing by Hanjin Shipping continue to put a wrench in supply chain planning and operations for all types of shippers. The bankruptcy, filed August 31, has caused widespread disruption in freight shipments worldwide. Manufacturers, farmers and agribusinesses, wholesalers, retailers, importers, exporters, distributors, and transportation and logistics providers are frustrated by the Hanjin situation as they try to figure out how best to secure their cargo at the busiest time of the year for retail shippers, with cargo moving in preparation for the fall shipping season and the holidays. Some cargo remains held in ports, some still on vessels out at sea, some still overseas at point of origin. Ripple-effect issues are popping up such as terminal operators not taking back empties, chassis shortages and more.
|
|
Fun Moments to Share
|
| Cornerstone System's President/CEO Tim Clay
|
Clay Catches Up With "Clay" Railcar -
So what do you do when you have a Cornerstone railcar named after you? You catch up to it as it rides the rails across the country and snap a fun photo of course! Cornerstone Systems' President/CEO Tim Clay recently traveled to Boston, MA at the same time that the company's "Clay" railcar arrived carrying thousands of cases of wine from Napa Valley. Cheers to great timing!
|
|
Fuel Prices
The Energy Information Administration reports U.S. On-Highway Diesel Fuel Prices (dollars per gallon) every week.
9/26/16 Date Released
2.382 Average U.S. Retail Price
-0.007 (Down) Change From Week Ago
-0.094 (Down) Change From Year Ago
|
|
|
Newsletter Sources: Cornerstone Systems, Logistics Management, American Shipper, Land Line Magazine, Progressive Railroading, Journal of Commerce, Transport Topics, National Retail Federation, SmartWay Transport-U.S. EPA, U.S. Energy Information Administration
|
|
|
|
|
