The shipping community got some relief over the Thanksgiving holiday as most carriers announced that they are postponing the Port Congestion Surcharge. The only carrier that we have not heard from yet seems to be Matson. Importers are already requesting that we ship out containers ASAP in this time period when the surcharge is absent. However keep in mind that if a full on labor dispute forces an extended shutdown of the terminals, carriers may feel they have the liberty to apply the Port Congestion Surcharge even to containers on the water. Which brings me to…

SSA terminal in Oakland closed its doors today around 11:30am due to another labor dispute between the longshoremen at the terminal operators. This is the third such shutdown in the last few weeks. SSA Terminal expects to be open on Tuesday. However these continued shutdowns are extremely frustrating for what is already one of the most congested West Coast terminals.

We continue to request that the shipping community be patient and flexible with truckers. Due to the extreme congestion and the high volume of containers at the terminals, truckers are completely maxed out.

-Jimmy Ting
Great World
jimmyting@gwlcorp.com
tel: 650-873-9050 x.1019