Ascent Global Logistics Blog
Over the last week, many events in international trade and the global supply chain have occurred. Below is a recap of the critical things you should know:
The coronavirus outbreak continues to cause disruptions to the global supply chain. The ocean carriers are continuing to void sailings or cancel port calls to reduce space, trying to deal with a lack of China base port cargo.
As the coronavirus outbreak worsens, global supply chains have begun to suffer the effects of the fallout. Due to the delays in inland truck transport caused by coronavirus restrictions, many refrigerated containers (reefers) filled with perishable cargo for the Chinese population are unable to connect to power via reefer plugs at terminals while waiting to be picked up by a truck.
General Rate Increase (GRI) Season is officially here and is top of mind for most Less-than-Truckload (LTL) shippers. The GRI season occurs on an annual basis and is when Less-than-Truckload carriers commonly increase rates.
Severe winter weather is currently impacting critical shipping lanes across the United States. Snow and ice have covered a large percentage of Midwestern and Northeastern states, covering roadways from Texas to Maine.
Today, February 5, 2020, it was announced that all trucks and warehouses in Shanghai and Ningbo, China are not allowed to run from today through February 9, 2020, according to the government.
As previously reported, the Chinese government announced the extension of the Chinese New Year Holiday until February 3, 2020, in hopes of containing the outbreak of the coronavirus.
On January 16, 2020, the United States Trade Representative (USTR) announced the reduction of the additional tariff on Section 301 List 4A goods from 15 percent to 7.5 percent, beginning at 12:01 AM on February 14, 2020.
Phase One Trade Agreement Signed
In a historic moment, a Phase One Trade Agreement was signed on January 15, 2020, between China and the United States, shining a positive light on the ongoing trade war between the two economic powerhouses.