Issuing ad hoc directives and impractical rules to implement advance electronic information on air cargo would have an adverse and costly impact on air cargo security, said the Global Air Cargo Advisory Group (GACAG). It said regulators should work closely with the air cargo industry to develop such rules and regulations in this area.

Zepol said U.S. import shipment volume for June, measured in TEUs, was down 3.7% from May, but is up 4.4% from June of 2011. As a result, it said Q2 of 2012 topped last year by 4.7%. Despite the drop from last month, June had the second highest TEU imports so far this year, outdoing January by a slight 1%, its market intelligence report said. Most Asian countries had a minor drop in shipments to the U.S. -- China decreased by 0.03% from May and the figures were similar for South Korea and Japan, it said. Germany dropped 12.9% from May, but Brazil (14.3%) and Chile (7.2%) both rose in exports to the U.S.. The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach decreased in imports from May by 5% and 3.7%, respectively. The Port of Seattle had the highest import increase of the top ten, 2.2%. Zepol said most VOCCs (vessel operating common carriers) were down in TEU imports in June. Maersk Line had a 6.6% decrease in imports, and Mediterranean Shipping Company dropped 8.6%. But China Ocean Shipping Company and Orient Overseas Container Line both rose over 8% from May.

The Retail Industry Leaders Association urged the International Longshoremen's Association and the U.S. Maritime Alliance to agree on a contract well in advance of the Sept. 30 deadline in order to prevent a disruption to the flow of goods and the lasting economic effects that would result, it said in a July 10 letter. The negotiations affect 14 East and Gulf Coast ports, accounting for 95 percent of all containerized shipments to the Eastern seaboard.

"Not surprisingly, no agreement was reached at this early stage of the bargaining" in the talks last month between the U.S. Maritime Exchange and the International Longshoremen's Association, said USMX Chairman James Capo in a memo to members. (See ITT's Online Archives 12070306).

The U.S. Council for International Business launched a new electronic Certificates of Origin (eCOs) service, it said. The certificates are international trade documents attesting to the origin of specified goods. Customs authorities often require them in order to obtain preferential duty rates or to fulfill obligations for letters of credit from a financial institution. USCIB said its eCOs save time and money by bypassing the delay and expense of employing messengers to obtain certification and offering a paperless, time-saving way to document a product’s origin.

The U.S. freight economy is projected to grow significantly in the years ahead, according to American Trucking Associations' U.S. Freight Transportation Forecast to 2023. Following a dip during the "Great Recession," total freight tonnage is expected to grow 21% by 2023, and revenue for the freight transportation industry is projected to rise 59% in that same timeframe, the forecast said. Trucking's share of the tonnage market will rise over 2 percentage points to 69.6% by 2023, while the industry's share of freight revenues will increase to 81.7% from 80.9%, it said. Rail's overall share of tonnage will fall to 15% in 2023 from 15.7% in 2011, but intermodal tonnage will rise 6.2% a year between 2012 and 2017, and then 5.4% annually through 2023, it said.

Contract talks with the U.S. Maritime Alliance (USMX) will resume July 18-21 at the Delray Beach Marriott in Delray Beach, Fla., as expected, said International Longshoremen's Association President Harold Daggett. (See ITT's Online Archives 12070306. He issued a public statement saying substantial progress was made in the talks last month.

FedEx said it completed the acquisition of Rapidão Cometa, one of the largest transportation and logistics companies in Brazil with revenue of more than $500 million in 2011. It said the acquisition is the latest step in the company's strategy for profitable growth in the Latin American and Caribbean region.

The International Longshoremen's Association is reporting "substantial progress" in talks last week with the U.S. Maritime Alliance (USMX) about a new contract, though little other word is leaking out of the contract talks. James Capo, chairman of the USMX, which represents shippers and ports in the talks, told us: "Sorry, but we have agreed to keep everything out of the press." But an ILA spokesman said another round of talks is scheduled for July 18-21 in Delray Beach, Fla.

New company members of the National Custom Brokers and Forwarders Association of America include: Regular members EH Harms USA, Inc., Baltimore, Md., Gava International Freight Consolidators, Bensenville, Ill., HOC USA, Inc., Tonawanda, N.Y., OTX Logistics, Miami Beach, Fla., and NorthStar Shipping & Trading, Houston, Texas; Affiliate members Amber Road, East Rutherford, N.J., Interstate Personnel Global Logistics Division, Torrance, Calif., and Veroot, Medina, Ohio.