BRIEFS

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Competition continues to increase in the US Durban disputes cause problems for shipping lines Port targets Japanese traders Philippine ports set for better traffic control Privitisation plans for Belfast port Malaysia rated for first time in Asian poll UPS announces new services to Pacific region Northwest dispute displeases customers LaGuardia to get extrasafety from concrete foam blocks

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MAY 15, 1998
Port authority to spend 850 million dollar in five years Sabena to cut costs with McKinsey's help Schenker parent company grows Bitter criticism of Schiphol disqualification BAX Global acquires Air Transport International French lorry drivers might interrupt the World Football Championships

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A move to curb India imports
Is UP selling Overnite to concentrate on rail?
Lines start working for higher 1999 rates
Diaz steps down, Pierce takes charge of two Pacific ship discussion groups
Clinton sways trade agenda
House-Senate conference deal close in highway bill
Alameda corridor project continues as two bridges are designed
Amid India nukes furor, US gives clean bill to China
US businesses begin pulling out of Indonesia
OOCL exec: Falling Indonesia imports forcing ship lines to drop services
P&O Nedlloyd reports a slowing of red ink flow in first quarter

Transportation

US, Chinese officials begin aviation talks
Wandering child is saved by a swift kick
Court ends 10-week port strike in Brazil

Maritime

Towboat pilot strike enters its second month
Shipping deregulation critic says bill won't sail through House
Oil transporters, Coast Guard differ on liability
Pakistan's Qasim berths its largest container ship
Chicken finds new Norfolk roost

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Home

A move to curb India imports
Is UP selling Overnite to concentrate on rail?
Lines start working for higher 1999 rates
Diaz steps down, Pierce takes charge of two Pacific ship discussion groups
Clinton sways trade agenda
House-Senate conference deal close in highway bill
Alameda corridor project continues as two bridges are designed
Amid India nukes furor, US gives clean bill to China
US businesses begin pulling out of Indonesia
OOCL exec: Falling Indonesia imports forcing ship lines to drop services
P&O Nedlloyd reports a slowing of red ink flow in first quarter

Transportation

US, Chinese officials begin aviation talks
Wandering child is saved by a swift kick
Court ends 10-week port strike in Brazil

Maritime

Towboat pilot strike enters its second month
Shipping deregulation critic says bill won't sail through House
Oil transporters, Coast Guard differ on liability
Pakistan's Qasim berths its largest container ship
Chicken finds new Norfolk roost

web site

Home

A move to curb India imports
Is UP selling Overnite to concentrate on rail?
Lines start working for higher 1999 rates
Diaz steps down, Pierce takes charge of two Pacific ship discussion groups
Clinton sways trade agenda
House-Senate conference deal close in highway bill
Alameda corridor project continues as two bridges are designed
Amid India nukes furor, US gives clean bill to China
US businesses begin pulling out of Indonesia
OOCL exec: Falling Indonesia imports forcing ship lines to drop services
P&O Nedlloyd reports a slowing of red ink flow in first quarter

Transportation

US, Chinese officials begin aviation talks
Wandering child is saved by a swift kick
Court ends 10-week port strike in Brazil

Maritime

Towboat pilot strike enters its second month
Shipping deregulation critic says bill won't sail through House
Oil transporters, Coast Guard differ on liability
Pakistan's Qasim berths its largest container ship
Chicken finds new Norfolk roost

	web site

Shanghai's Box Capacity Reaching 3.5 Million-TEU Level Violence in Jakarta Stops Distribution ANERA's SCs Add Up to 482 NYK, Showa Ink Merger Pact COSCO Orders Nine 1,900-TEU Ships OOCL Enhances Office Network in Australia Nittsu Launches Logistics Services in Kawasaki FAZ

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MAY 15, 1998
PMO directive on core projects clearance IMC hopes sanctions will only be temporary 'in-principle' guarantees accorded to 3 power projects Mazgaon Dock bags ISO-9001

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Mass exodus from Indonesia A MASS exodus of the international business community has started from Indonesia as the country descends into worsening violence and chaos. US move to curb criminal oil spill prosecutions LEGISLATION to curtail the criminal prosecution of shipping firms and individuals involved in oil spills is now very likely, according to a leading member of the US House of Representatives. Profits setback for Kvaerner TOUGH market conditions in all its core markets resulted in flat first-quarter net profits for Anglo-Norwegian Kvaerner group despite a 31.5% improvement in turnover. Aker RGI lowers holding NORWAY'S Aker RGI has sold 10% of its stake in Aker Maritime to unspecified Norwegian and foreign institutional investors, writes Rajesh Joshi, Oslo Correspondent. Yap resigns as president of WG&A Lines WILLIAM, Gothong and Aboitiz (WG&A Lines), the Philippines' largest domestic shipping line, has lost its president and chief executive officer after just nine months in the job. Largest monohull fast ferry success THE world's largest monohull fast ferry, pictured, has successfully completed sea trials, in advance of her handover to Italian ferry operator Tirrenia later this month, writes Dale Wainwright. Built by Fincantieri's Naval Shipbuilding Division facilities at Riva Trigosa and Muggiano, the Aries achieved a top speed of 44 knots at close to maximum continuous revolutions, with approximately 800 tonnes of deadweight. India to open up maritime training INDIA is to allow private maritime training institutes in a move to counter the country's shortage of marine officers and seamen. Daewoo confirms interest in Hanwha DAEWOO has emerged as a potential buyer of Hanwha Energy, a member of the hard-pressed South Korean conglomerate Hanwha.

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MAY 15, 1998
Container shortage to hit China and Japan SHIPPING executives expect the container shortage affecting South Korea, Indonesia and Thailand to extend to Hong Kong, China and Japan soon. Pimentel to head Cunard/Seabourn SEABOURN president Larry Pimentel is to be president and ceo of a new company to be formed by the anticipated merger of Cunard Line and Seabourn Cruise Line. Transroll/Grupo Libra to quit consortium OBSERVERS in Brazil suggest that Transroll and Grupo Libra are to pull out of their east coast South America consortium with Navieras Puerto Rico. More Thai cargo passes through Malaysia TRANSHIPMENT of containers from Thailand through the Malaysian port of Penang has increased by about 70 per cent. Bidding for Sepetiba port delayed BRAZILIAN transport minister Eliseu Padilha has postponed bidding for Sepetiba, the country's projected new hub port. North Atlantic is getting rougher NORTH Atlantic storms are becoming increasingly severe, according to climate experts at a conference on climate change, held yesterday in London. P&O Ports takes on the MUA AUSTRALIA'S biggest stevedore, P&O Ports, has taken the MUA to court to stop the union "interfering in its shipping operations". Halter Marine buys Trinity yard TDI-HALTER, a subsidiary of the Halter Marine Group, has reached an agreement with Trinity Industries to acquire its shipyard in Orange, Texas. Average adjusters seek IUMI co-operation CO-OPERATION with the insurance industry to find common ground in the reform of general average (GA) is being advocated by the chairman of the Association of Average Adjusters. Force majeure lifted on Ok-Tedi PAPUA New Guinea's Ok-Tedi copper mine has lifted its force majeure on copper concentrate shipments. Grupo Libra to start Argentina-Chile service BRAZIL'S Grupo Libra has announced that it will start an intermodal service for containerised cargo between Argentina and Chile. Lines denounce Brazilian piracy fee SHIPPING lines using Brazilian ports are denouncing a new $450 per vessel fee that port authorities throughout the country are levying to fund anti-piracy inspections. US carriers seek service approval CROWLEY American Transport and APL are seeking approval from the FMC to provide a weekly service between the US east coast and Panama, and the west coast of South America. Lines to cut Jakarta services EXPORTS from Indonesia's main port Tanjong Priok may soon grind to a halt as shipping lines cut services to Jakarta's facility in the face of spiralling civil unrest.

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MAY 15, 1998
P&ONL insiste toujours pour avoir son propre terminal à Rotterdam Lors d'une conférence de presse téléphonique, Tim Harris GCE de l'armement P&ONL a laisé entendre qu'il tablait sur une forte croissance du volume pendant le second trimestre, qui dépasserait les 600.000 TEU transportés pendant le dernier trimestre de 97. Par contre, il a fait preuve de discrétion en ce qui concerne la situation des taux sur la route Europe-Asie et retour, estimant qu'il était trop tôt pour prédire que le raffermissement des prix westbound serait suffisant pour relever le niveau du revenu moyen par TEU. Quant aux taux EB, ils étaient toujours à la baisse. "La rigidité des structures portuaires freine la croissance du shortsea" "Les nouveaux concepts de shortsea et de cabotage préconisés par la Commission européenne ne pouront être définitivement appliqués que lorsque les ports méditerranéens et d'Europe du Nord seront exploités d'une manière différente." C'est ce qu'a declaré Emanuele Grimaldi, le managing director du groupe napolitain du même nom, lors de la conférence roro98 à Göteborg. Un point de vue partagé par de nombreux acteurs du secteur. La Deutsche Post est à la recherche de nouvelles acquisitions La Deutsche Post, la société postale allemande qui devrait être privatisée par une introduction en bourse en 2000, a annoncé qu'elle veut continuer à étendre son réseau de transport de colis par des acquisitions et des partenariats. Le groupe a par ailleurs publié mercredi des résultats financiers excellents. A tel titre que pour la première fois, elle va débourser un dividende de 103 mio. de DEM à son actionnaire (le gouvernement allemand), grâce à un bond de son bénéfice d'exploitation, qui est passé de 576 mio. de DEM en 1996 à 752 mio. de DEM l'année passée. La DP est une société anonyme (AG) depuis trois ans. Le Parlement européen veut réduire les compétences du comité de transport sous douane Le Parlement européen a approuvé à Strasbourg mercredi in extenso le rapport de Karla Peijs de la commission parlementaire 'affaires économiques et monétaires et de politique industrielle. L'année dernière, une enquête parlementaire avait démontré que le contrôle du transport de transit laisse à désirer et donne lieu à une vaste fraude. Le rapport Peijs a trait à la proposition de la Commission européenne visant à améliorer le contrôle sur le transport de transit au sein de l'UE grâce à un programme d'action basé sur trois piliers, à savoir l'adaptation de la législation, une meilleure coopération entre les Etats-membres (Douane 2000) et l'automatisation du contrôle douanier (NCTS).

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A third of the House Rail Subcommittee's members are expected to co-sponsor legislation to reverse the Surface Transportation Board's bottleneck decision. Similar to legislation previously introduced in the Senate, these bills are not expected to pass this session of Congress. Shippers, however, see them as a prelude to more successful efforts next year before the 106th Congress. In this election year, lawmakers wanting to deliver to voters an ISTEA reauthorization bill containing some $217 billion in new highway and transit spending are bedeviled by a previously agreed to budget agreement. Under that promise, each additional dollar in spending must be accompanied by an equivalent spending reduction. Since proposed ISTEA spending exceeds budget caps by some $30 billion, other programs must be cut by that amount if ISTEA is not to be thinned down. California truckers are in a quandary over the future of diesel fuel in the Golden State. The state attorney general and environmental groups have sued four large California grocery chains' distribution centers, contending diesel exhaust presents a health risk. California truckers already pay the highest fuel costs in the nation for the cleanest diesel. They question the Catch-22 logic that allows them to be sued for using fuel mandated by the state's air quality board. In exchange for gaining direct access to some 400,000 new container loads at the Port of New York and New Jersey's Howland Hook Marine Terminal, CSX and NS agreed to extend their northern New Jersey shared-assets area. In the process they will jointly operate the previously abandoned seven-mile Staten Island Railroad. Some U.S. ports take umbrage at the GAO findings that fruit imports are unsafe. Philadelphia is one such port that says it has taken extra measures to ensure the safe transit of fruit. Much of the safety has to do with where the fruit is coming from and how established the trade lane is. The U.S. has been importing grapes from Chile for decades. Philadelphia and its Chilean counterparts have a long-term partnership based on investment and labor practices not found in many other places. UPS ended the second quarter with the highest return on its international operation in history, a $34.5 million net profit. Last year the company lost nearly as much in the same quarter. The picture is not so bright on the domestic side. Shipment levels for ground parcel deliveries are still lagging 4 percent behind prestrike levels and the company is determined to regain that business. Guaranteed Ground, the commercial money-back guarantee introduced on May 4, is part of that plan. Daimler Benz and Chrysler plan to leverage their logistics know-how to bring new-found benefits to the soon-to-be-joined automotive giants. While Mercedes' strength is in world-class design and technology, Chrysler excels at building cars fast and with an eye on cost. The joined companies will find ways to benefit from each other's strengths when introducing a new vehicle or entering a new market. How to capitalize on the burgeoning middle class in Asia will be part of the new company's focus. Emery Worldwide is stepping up its $70 million plan to reengineer its information systems around the globe. The CNF Transportation subsidiary last week said it would deploy 3,000 next-generation dual-radio mobile computers in pickup and delivery trucks. The mobile computers are PTC-1124 pen-based handheld computers from Telxon Corp., Akron, Ohio. The PTC-1124s will replace Telxon PTC-620 handheld computers, which have been used by Emery drivers for the past 12 years. Logistics planning can make a difference in a company's growth and bottom line. That was the message at the recent meeting of the Canadian Association of Logistics Management. General Motors and Nestle Canada highlighted their successful, albeit different logistics strategies. GM has outsourced nearly all its logistics work to third parties, while Nestle has refined its operations by bringing back in-house functions previously contracted out. Both have been able to achieve much greater global market penetration thanks to the emphasis on transportation planning.