A freight train derailment in east London has severely disrupted rail connections serving London Gateway and Tilbury, with container backlogs threatening to build at two of the UK’s busiest gateways. Container movements through the Thames Estuary face significant disruption following…

Ocean freight rates on Asia–Europe trades are rising again after months of downward pressure, but contrasting market indicators and increasing blank sailings suggest the recovery is being driven as much by carrier capacity management as underlying cargo demand. The Asia–Europe…

Airfreight markets are entering the final quarter of 2026 with strengthening demand, sharply rising fuel costs and growing pressure on capacity, although significant differences between trades are creating contrasting conditions for shippers. Global air cargo demand rebounded strongly in September,…

Nearly two-thirds of Far East–Europe container shipping capacity is now operating through the Red Sea and Suez Canal, marking a significant shift away from Cape of Good Hope diversions, although security concerns and changing service rotations mean the return remains…

Strong import volumes, tightening trucking capacity and mounting difficulties returning empty containers are creating new challenges at major US ports, threatening delivery efficiency and increasing inland logistics costs. The pressures affecting America’s container gateways are changing. While vessel congestion and…

Global container volumes have reached another record high, with expanding trade flows across Asia, the Americas and Africa demonstrating the resilience of international commerce despite geopolitical uncertainty, rising transport costs and persistent shipping disruption. Global container trade reached 17.46 million…

Container shipping lines are adjusting capacity as Asian factories resume production following Golden Week, with relatively few cancelled sailings but contrasting conditions emerging on routes to Europe and the United States. As China’s Golden Week holiday ends and export activity…

Airfreight markets are entering the fourth-quarter peak season with demand strengthening, capacity tightening on key routes and renewed disruption in the Middle East adding pressure to airline networks and transport costs. Global air cargo demand recovered strongly in September, with…

Congestion across South Asia’s container shipping network is increasing costs and disrupting connections for US-bound cargo, while surging China–India demand and changing Middle East trade flows accelerate India’s emergence as a regional transhipment hub. India’s expanding manufacturing economy and the…

German dockworkers have accepted a new pay agreement, averting widespread port strikes, but record-low Rhine water levels continue to disrupt inland freight movements, increasing costs and threatening North European supply chains. North European importers have avoided another potential disruption after…

Surging Chinese vehicle exports are driving a new wave of car carrier investment, while European operators expand their fleets and develop more versatile vessels, creating potential opportunities for UK and European exporters. The global car carrier market is entering another…

Supply-chain leaders meeting in London have highlighted a significant shift in priorities, as resilience, visibility and flexibility move from operational concerns to strategic business requirements. Recent years have tested international supply chains through pandemic disruption, port congestion, geopolitical conflict, Red…

Metro CEO Grant Liddell joined Lloyds Bank’s Markets Matter briefing to examine how geopolitical disruption, changing sourcing strategies and rising transport costs are reshaping global supply chains and why underlying trade remains surprisingly resilient. The Lloyds Bank’s Markets Matter series…

UK importers face an unusually volatile October as falling Asia–Europe freight rates collide with excess scheduled capacity, returning Suez services, short-notice blank sailings and continuing disruption across Asian ports. Ocean carriers are attempting to halt a 12-week decline in Asia–Europe…

Global air cargo demand and rates are strengthening ahead of the traditional peak season, with rising volumes, firm pricing and higher fuel costs creating a more robust market as October begins. The latest TAC Index and WorldACD data point to…

Severe congestion across Asian container ports is tying up millions of TEU of capacity, driving schedule reliability to a four-year low and raising the prospect of disruption continuing well into 2027. Repeated typhoons, strong Asian export demand and congestion spreading…

Container lines are restoring services through the Red Sea and Suez Canal, promising shorter Asia–Europe transits and more effective capacity. But the security picture around the Middle East’s critical shipping chokepoints is becoming more complicated, not less. More Asia–Europe services…

Air cargo’s traditional summer slowdown has failed to significantly loosen the market, with resilient demand, constrained capacity and renewed growth on key ex-Asia lanes keeping pressure on space and pricing as autumn begins. Global air cargo volumes were 6% higher…

UK haulage is entering a period in which access to the right vehicle, route and transport option could become increasingly important. For shippers, that makes planning and flexibility just as important as the rate agreed for an individual movement. More…

The EU is reducing some sustainability and due-diligence obligations, but that does not necessarily mean businesses will need less supply-chain information. For shippers, the capabilities of their logistics partners could become increasingly important. For years, businesses have been preparing for…

Air freight enters the traditional peak-season build-up with a finely balanced market, as capacity reductions and resilient pricing create the potential for rapid tightening when Asian export demand accelerates. The usual late-September surge may still be several weeks away, but…