Ocean freight rates on the decline?

Anyone else notice that ocean freight rates are declining? I was recently approached by an NVO with rates out of China to the U.S. that are approximately $100 to $200 lower than what was offered back in November. Even with the carriers implementing a pre-Chinese New Year peak, rates appear to be headed in a downward trend. I would be curious to see what others are seeing in the market.

Zepol Releases “2010 U.S. Export Review”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Contact: Chelsea Craven
Zepol Corporation
Tel: 612.435.2179
chelsea.craven@zepol.com
www.zepol.com
Follow Zepol on Twitter @ZepolCorp

Zepol Releases “2010 U.S. Export Review”
Report analyzes exporting trends for 29 major U.S. industry sectors from January through October 2010

MINNEAPOLIS, January 10th, 2011 — Zepol Corporation, the leading trade intelligence company, announced the release of a report today analyzing recent export trends for 29 major U.S. industries. This report provides detailed information on 3-digit NAICS (North American Industry Classification System) codes and compares export trends to previous years as well as sheds light upon potential future developments. Click this link to download the free report or visit www.zepol.com.

4 Key Insights Found in the Report:
1. Canada and Mexico receive the highest value of exports from the U.S. with $200 and $129 billion respectively from January through October 2010.
2. All industry groups analyzed in the review posted positive value changes over last year; the average value growth was 23.48%.
3. Hit severely by the recession, Mineral and Ore exports have recovered well in 2010 and post the highest value change over last year with a 61.51% increase.
4. China is the third largest importer of U.S. exports; top products include soybeans, aircraft, and aluminum scrap.

“Exporters as well as importers will find this report a valuable tool for analyzing the trade market,” stated Paul Rasmussen, CEO & President of Zepol Corporation. “Derived from Zepol’s powerful trade intelligence tool, TradeView™, readers will gain knowledge of recent market trends and in depth analysis on industry specific export activities.”

For each 3-digit NAICS code, the review lists the top countries of destination, the top U.S. ports of departure, the current trade balance, value trends for the previous two years, and transportation methods used.

Zepol’s tools are available for online access through a variety of subscription options at www.zepol.com. Annual access to Zepol’s trade data tool subscriptions range from $895 to $9,995; these subscriptions meet the needs of all importers, suppliers, transportation companies, and government agencies. To view more free trade reports from Zepol, click here.

About Zepol Corporation:
Zepol Corporation is a Minnesota-based company working to provide the most complete and up-to-date trade data to organizations around the world. Zepol provides industry leading trade data tools, TradeIQ™ and TradeView™, for analyzing the United States trade marketplace. TradeIQ™ is an up-to-date U.S. Customs import Bill of Lading database and is available through an online interface. TradeView™ provides access to U.S. Census data to visualize the import and export economy.

Zepol’s user base includes over 1,000 subscribers representing the leaders of every trade related industry. Our
customers are the most important players in the international trade community. Users include leading
transportation executives, supply chain professionals, competitive intelligence practitioners, and intellectual
property attorneys at:

• Over 40 of the Fortune 500
• 4 of the top 10 Port Authorities by Volume
• 7 of the top 10 Freight Forwarders
• 2 of the top 3 Fruit Importers
• 9 of the top 20 Chemical Companies

2011 Freest Economies: Heritage Foundation Report

The Heritage Foundation has recently released their 2011 Index of Economic Freedom report which details the world’s freest economies. The report covers 183 countries across 10 specific freedoms such as trade freedom, business freedom, investment freedom, and property rights.

For the 17th year in a row, Hong Kong assumed the top spot in the rankings.

According to the report, economic freedom is described as “the fundamental right of every human to control his or her own labor and property”. The report gives each country a ranking of 1-100 where a score of 100 represents the greatest amount of freedom. The rankings are based upon the following criteria:

1. Business Freedom
2. Trade Freedom
3. Fiscal Freedom
4. Government Spending
5. Monetary Freedom
6. Investment Freedom
7. Financial Freedom
8. Property Rights
9. Freedom from Corruption
10. Labor Freedom

2011 Top Ten Rankings
1. Hong Kong
2. Singapore
3. Australia
4. New Zealand
5. Switzerland
6. Canada
7. Ireland
8. Denmark
9. United States
10. Bahrain

The United States lowest ranking came in the form of government spending at 54.6.

In the most recent year, total government expenditures, including consumption and transfer payments, equaled 38.9 percent of GDP. Spending increases totaled well over $1 trillion in 2009 alone, an increase of more than 20 percent over 2008. Stimulus spending has hurt the fiscal balance and placed federal debt on an unsustainable trajectory. Gross government debt exceeded 90 percent of GDP in 2010.

The bottom five countries in order:

175. Venezuela
176. Eritrea
177. Cuba
178. Zimbabwe
179. North Korea

Shanghai Overtakes Singapore as World’s Busiest Container Port

According to a report on the Shanghai Municipal Government website, Shanghai became the world’s busiest container port in 2010 after handling 29.05 million TEUs. Singapore, which previously held the number one spot, handled 500,000 less TEU’s than Shanghai during the year. Shanghai’s cargo throughput rose to approximately 650 million tons in 2010, helping to claim the top global spot. Government officials cite economic recovery and the Shanghai World Expo as reasons for the increased cargo throughput.

The report doesn’t indicate the volume distinction between the Waigaoqiao and Yangshan ports in the Shanghai area.

Singapore had a fairly robust year in terms of growth showing a 10% increase in container throughput over 2009. A recent report I read indicated that Singapore handled 28.4 million TEU’s during 2010. Singapore has consistently been ranked number one in the world as a major transshipment hub for cargo transiting Asia. Shanghai overtaking Singapore is definitely no small feat and shows how impressive the China machine continues to be.

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