American Shipper articles from January 1992

American Shipper archives from January 1992

Customs raids shake up New York garment district.
January 1, 1992... Buoyed by its success in closing down Macao as a gateway for illicit shipments of U.S.-bound Chinese textiles, the U.S. Customs Service has brought its war against transshipments to American soil. During the first week of December, New...

AAEI: Customs oversteps bounds. (American Association of Exporters and Importers)
January 1, 1992... Agency disputes association's claim that proposed change in rules of origin should be the job of Congress. A U.S. Customs Service proposal to change a key country-of-origin provision affecting imports is drawing fire from the American...

New round of settlements. (shippers, non-vessel-operating common carriers and distributors agree to payments in rate cases)
January 1, 1992... A dozen shippers, NVOCCs and distributors agree to payments totaling $503,475 in Pacific rate cases. Federal Maritime Commission chairman Christopher I. Koch announced a new round of settlements of cases involving alleged rate...

Surcharge decision angers shippers. (Federal Maritime Commission ends investigations on carrier surcharges)
January 1, 1992... They say FMC inaction could figure in shipping Act debate. Sayre still hopes Shippers are upset by the Federal Maritime Commission's decision to end its investigation into carrier surcharges. Some say the FMC decision could mobilize...

Don't penalize Taiwan, Sea-Land says. (Sea-Land Service Inc.)
January 1, 1992... Carrier says problems remain, but Taiwan should get chore time to life restrictions. One of the U.S.-flag carriers said to be victimized by Taiwan's maritime trade practices has asked the Federal Maritime Commission not to retaliate...

TWRA price hikes January 1. (TransPacific Westbound Rate Agreement)
January 1, 1992... Handling or documentation fees are added in five countries. Increases average 8%. The Transpacific Westbound Rate Agreement will increase base rates on a variety of dry commodities starting this month and implement destination-handling...

U.S.-North Europe rates to climb. (shipping rates)
January 1, 1992... Conference plans to increase prices with seasonal cycles and to boost CAF surcharge immediately. Conference carriers plan to boost base rates on shipments between the United States and North Europe on a commodity-by-commodity basis...

Matson, Sea-Land plan 2.9% rate hike. (Matson Navigation Company Inc.; Sea-Land Service Inc.)
January 1, 1992... Shippers seem to take the news in stride. Barring prohibitive action by federal regulators, the two big shipping lines carrying containers between the U.S. mainland and Hawaii will boost their base rates for both directions by 2.9 percent...

ACL moves onto the global scene. (Atlantic Container Lines Inc.)
January 1, 1992... Within a few months, Atlantic Container Line will be expanding its reach beyond the borders of Europe and North America. In mid-December ACL said it was in the final stages of negotiating connecting agreements that will enable it to offer...

Renewing trade with South Africa. (Wilhelmsen Lines A-S)
January 1, 1992... Wilhelmsen Lines A/S of Norway believes the time for commerce with South Africa is here, and is taking steps to become a player in what promises to be vigorous trade. With the Jan. 20 sailing of the MV Tarn from the Port of Houston,...

Nedlloyd ends '91 slimmer, stronger. (Royal Nedlloyd Group N.V.)
January 1, 1992... The Royal Nedlloyd Group's recent record for disposing of non-core assets at decent prices has industry analysts brightening their forecasts for the Dutch transport firm. It also seems to have stanched the flow of public criticism coming...

Crowley, Zapata settle antitrust case. (Crowley Maritime Corp.)
January 1, 1992... Crowley Maritime Corp. reached an out-of-court settlement in a multimillion-dollar antitrust suit filed by a former competitor in the U.S.-Puerto Rico trade. The amount of the settlement was not disclosed. As part of the agreement to...

Flexible global contracts. (service contracts under the Shipping Act of 1984)
January 1, 1992... The presidential advisory commission on the 1984 Shipping Act remains divided over confidential service contracts and other key issues. Two days of meetings in Washington in mid-December produced one ray of hope. There was degree of...

Slow thaw for the cold war. (twelve U.S. ports continue to ban Soviets)
January 1, 1992... Have you heard the one about the Soviet sea captains who've been getting some extra time off? It seems that every other week, when it's time for the DSR-Senator joint service to make its regularly scheduled call at Norfolk, the ship's...

Niche carrier lands 3 nice accounts. (Total Ocean Marine Service)
January 1, 1992... Total Ocean Marine Services has begun service after winning a two-year fight for permission to operate as a third-flag carrier in the U.S.-Venezuelan trade. The carrier said the first southbound voyage of its Mercadian Arrow - a...

Lloyd Brasileiro and Ivaran sign deal. (Companhia de Navegacao Lloyd Brasileiro; A-S Ivarans Rederi)
January 1, 1992... Companhia de Navegacao Lloyd Brasiliero continues to ride the comeback trail. The Brazilian state-owned line hopes its new cooperative agreement with a prominent competitor will revitalize its battered reputation, while easing overcrowding in...

MarAd helps Lykes over a hurdle. (Maritime Administration; Lykes Brothers Steamship Company Inc.)
January 1, 1992... In an action that breathes five years of additional life into five "elderly" but still useful U.S.-flag ships, the Maritime Administration has agreed to extend the subsidized lives of five vessels owned by Lykes Bros. Steamship Company. ...

When the cartel collapsed. (International Coffee Organization breakup ends quotas on coffee thus promoting bulk shipments)
January 1, 1992... A coffee importer is moving ahead with plans to use part of a former New Orleans grain elevator for what would be the bulk green-coffee terminal in the U.S. The New Orleans Dock Board has approved plans to lease three acres of silos at...

Niels Johnsen surprises free traders. (International Shipholding Corp.'s chairman, Niels W. Johnsen, Sr.)
January 1, 1992... Niels W. Johnsen, Sr., has proven once again that he doesn't speak from anybody's script but his own. The much-admired chairman of International Shipholding Corporation surprised a luncheon audience recently by speaking like a...

Koch: give domestics to the ICC. (Federal Maritime Commission chairman, Christopher Koch plans to turn domestic offshore trade tariffs to Interstate Commerce Commission)
January 1, 1992... In a dramatic departure from the past FMC chairman Christopher Koch would just as soon turn all domestic offshore trade over to the Interstate Commerce Commission. Koch said he was speaking only for himself, but he does not detect any strong...

Path cleared for rail-barge mergers. (Interstate Commerce Commission ruling to make acquiring barge lines easier for railroads)
January 1, 1992... A recent Interstate Commerce Commission ruling may make it easier for railroads to acquire barge lines. In that ruling, the ICC allowed railroad giant CSX Corp.'s barge subsidiary, American Commercial Barge Lines (ACBL), to acquire Hines...

NIT League toughens its stance. (National Industrial Transportation League)(includes related article)
January 1, 1992... The National Industrial Transportation League says the only way it might support continued antitrust immunity for ocean conferences is if shippers are allowed to negotiate confidential service contracts. In a resolution adopted at NIT...

Shippers balk as bankrupt truckers collect for unauthorized discounts. (shippers being charged for undercharges)
January 1, 1992... Suppose you received a bill for two thousand dollars for a car you paid off years ago. You complain to the manufacturer, who explains that your local dealer gave you an unauthorized discount, which you must now repay. Does that scenario...

Greenbrier acquires Great Lakes Container. (Greenbrier Capital Corp.; Great Lakes Containers Corp.)
January 1, 1992... Greenbrier Capital Corp., a subsidiary of The Greenbrier Companies, has formed Greenbrier Equipment Services Inc. Greenbrier Capital bought Great Lakes Container Corp. of Cudahy, Wis., in October, and moved the company to Chicago. ...

What ports are spending overseas. (includes related article)
January 1, 1992... The Port of Los Angeles is taking a lot of heat for the $450,000 a year that is Tokyo representative, Shuji Nomura, is spending to drum up business. Port officials there assert the high amount is justified, first by Nomura's success and...

BN's waterbridge to Mexico. (Burlington Northern Railroad Co. to provide integrated rail-barge service between U.S. and Mexico)
January 1, 1992... Burlington Northern Railroad has formed a joint venture to provide an integrated railbarge service via Gulf ports between Mexico and the U.S. and, eventually, Canada. BN, the only major western U.S. railroad without direct access to...

Air Canada joins CARAT. (Cargo Agents Reservation Air waybill insurance and Tracking, air cargo computer system)(includes related article)
January 1, 1992... For air freight forwarders, the dream of one-stop shopping is moving closer to reality. Air Canada's new Totem cargo automation system will be the sixth airline cargo computer system that forwarders will be able to gain access to via...

New group for freight middlemen. (American International Freight Association)
January 1, 1992... A fledgling group of transportation intermediaries is apparently seeing its rift with the association widening but at the same time might be able to build a bridge with the freight forwarding industry. The Portland, Ore-based Americans...

Duty drawback battles rage on two fronts. (refund of customs duties; American Association of Exporters and Importers; National Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association)
January 1, 1992... Importers and customs brokers are marshalling their forces against U.S. government effort to eliminate certain duty drawbacks in 1994 and what they see as an attempt by the U.S. Customs Service to discourage use of what drawbacks remain...

Emery targets the fashion trade. (Emery Air Freight Corp. to service textile industries)
January 1, 1992... Emery Worldwide says it's determined to become a major force in air freight transportation of apparel and textiles. "We think we will be the major fashion in carrier in the country," said Rod R. Hamby, the company's new director of...

FedEx denies putting squeeze on forwarders. (Federal Express Corp.)
January 1, 1992... Federal Express Corporation is conducting a public-relations campaign to counter claim that it is trying to squeeze airfreight forwarders out of business. A number of forwarders have complained that Memphis-based Federal Express is going...

Five become one at Romar. (Trailer Train Inc., M.H. Hillery Inc., Romar Trucking Inc., Romar Terminal and Warehouse Co. and American Shippers Inc. to merge as Romar Transportation Systems Inc.)
January 1, 1992... Trailer Train, sister companies will operate under single management, corporate name. Trailer Train Inc. and four sister companies are being merged into a single company, Romar Transportation Systems Inc. Effective Jan. 1, the Romar...

Navieras adds 1000 hi-cube reefers. (Navieras de Puerto Rico)
January 1, 1992... Navieras de Puerto Rico has added 1,000 refrigerated containers to its service between the U.S. mainland and Puerto Rico. The containers were built by Hyundai Precision and Industry Co. in South Korea. They will replace 300 of...

Miami to add gantry cranes. (Port of Miami)
January 1, 1992... Port will have eight container cranes. 42-foot channel to be finished by mid-1993. The Port of Miami plans to acquire two new container gantry cranes that will increase the number of cranes at the port to eight. Port director Carmen...

CSXI upgrades seagirt service. (CSX Intermodal Inc.; Seagirt Marine Terminal)
January 1, 1992... Adds dedicated intermodal service to Baltimore. After a rough start, Baltimore's modern Seagirt Marine Terminal is gradually coming into its own. "We're 70 percent occupied after a little more than one year," said Adrian G. Teel,...

NYK gets its own terminal at Oakland. (Nippon Yusen Kaisha Line)
January 1, 1992... 15-year lease guaranteeing at least 50,000 loaded TEUs annually. Nippon Yusen Kaisha Line has opened its own container-handling terminal Oakland, where it is hosting not only its own ships but also those of its transpacific service partner,...

Seattle's search for space. (Port of Seattle)
January 1, 1992... Seattle port commissioners have given the final go-ahead to an expansion strategy that could roughly double the port's container-handling capacity by 2000, but its fruition is not guaranteed, port officials said. First, individual...

Partners sought for LA coal terminal. (Los Angeles, California)
January 1, 1992... Port wants coal producers, buyers and shipowners to spread risk. Could open in mid-1995. Los Angeles port officials have come up with a novel way to finance the building and operation of a steam-coal terminal: forming a corporation...

EC regulatory brew: too many chefs? (confusion reigns as several international shipping organizations try to influence the European Community's impending laws for its shipping sector)(includes related article) (International/Policy & Planning)
January 1, 1992... Since 1958 maritime industry players around the globe have been trying to influence the way the European Community regulates its shipping sector. By the end of this year some long-pending maritime questions must be resolved to set the stage...

'Little Tiger' shipper councils. (councils in Asian nations) (International/Policy & Planning)
January 1, 1992... Shipper councils in Asia's "Little Tiger" nations are often regarded are paper tigers. Although the councils dispute that characterization, the record indicates that carriers and conferences don't always pay much attention to the views...

Japan eyes Panama Canal role. (International/Policy & Planning)
January 1, 1992... Forget Noriega, the real threat to America's stake in the Panama Canal is Japan. That's the message from one member of the Panama Canal Commission. "Japan would probably like to be in a position to operate the Panama Canal for Panama...

Privatization. (port districts managed by private companies) (International/Policy & Planning)
January 1, 1992... The Port of Tlbury on the Thames below London is expected to become a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Port of London Authority January 1, setting the stage for privatization of the port early in 1992. Bids from prospective owners are being...

Things could be worse. (status of the American marine insurance market) (International/Policy & Planning)
January 1, 1992... The words American marine underwriters use to describe their results for the last year range from the prosaic to the unprintable. But words like "bad," "miserable," "awful," "horrible" and "really lousy" all mean pretty much the same thing....

The ghost of "Svenska" returns. (public policy issue revived) (International/Policy & Planning)
January 1, 1992... Everyone thought the "Svenska" public interest standard had died a quiet death when the Shipping Act of 1984 became law, but like the ghost of Christmas past, it came back to throw a scare into the North Atlantic conferences when they...

Korea, Inc.(USA). (Korea to establish customs brokerage and freight forwarding service in the United States) (International/Policy & Planning)
January 1, 1992... U.S. Customs gave them the idea and they're taking it global. $20 million project calls for head office in Los Angeles, with branch offices in New York, Chicago, Seattle, San Francisco and Houston. Objective is to achieve 30 percent savings...

What's Korea up to? (shipping regulation) (International/Policy & Planning)
January 1, 1992... Is it a tight rein on shipping, as U.S. officials fear? Or looser rein, as Korean claims? Is Korea on the verge of implementing tough tariff and service filing requirements that could throw commerce with that country into an economic...

Singapore's strategy. (island nation's economic strategies to dominate trade in the region) (International/Policy & Planning)
January 1, 1992... The Port of Singapore is at the right place at the right time. The right place: A natural deepwater harbor beside a narrow strait through which almost all east-west shipping traffic must pass. The right time: An era when a shift in...

Southeast Asia feeders. (area ports cannot accommodate modern containerships) (International/Policy & Planning)
January 1, 1992... Bangkok's traffic gridlock is world-famous, and drivers emerging from it react instinctively. When they hit the open road of the Bangna-Trad highway, they stomp the accelerator. Bangna-Trad is a divided four-lane that runs straight east...