Dear Valued Customer,

Just as retailers are starting to gear up for the holiday season, there are warnings of a possible nationwide shipping logjam. Shipments start to pile up at the terminal plus the shortage of the rail cars, workers, and the delay pick up of the importer, which forces the U.S. supply chain to a constant uncertainty. More than 35,000 containers are designated for rail, and around 9,000 units will be discharged per day at the port of Los Angeles. It could take another 4-6 weeks to digest the mentioned containers.

To cut down the workforce of the rail, and to provide a precise service, the rail company lost 20% of its employee and delivered the inland containers with shorter trains two years ago. These could be fragile once there’s any hyper efficient, it would cause some things unexpected such as the effect of the pandemic last year. Rail companies are now hiring hundreds of the new employee and hoping that the situation will be relived in the soonest future.

The serious congestion at both terminal and the inland hubs are affecting the U.S. supply system as well. Things are not been solved despite of the new pick-up policy (Suspend, but not waive the collection of demurrage fee) announced by the carriers. The shortage of the truckers also caused the importers fail to pick up their shipments timely. Luckily, there’ll be no strike action according to the latest update on the negotiation between ILWU and PMA or the situation might get even worse.

As you could see from the above, it would be a nationwide phenomenon instead of regional as the U.S. retailers are preparing the shipments for the coming holidays. It’s necessary to make a forecast of your upcoming volume in Q3 and instruct your vendors to keep close contact with our origin office to prevent from any potential unpredictable risk. We’ll keep monitoring the situation for you, and if there’s any updates, will keep you all posted.

Should you have any questions, please contact your sales rep or our team; we are all happy to help. 

USPTI appreciate your support!