Know What's Happening in Supply Chain
Know What's Happening in Supply Chain
Iranian drone strikes hit Kuwait’s oil infrastructure ahead of OPEC+ talks
Iranian drones struck Kuwait’s oil infrastructure, causing severe material damage to petrochemical plants, a government office complex and desalination facilities, just hours before an OPEC+ meeting where members agreed in principle to raise output by 206,000 barrels per day in May.
Also developing:
India’s government announced a rapid spot‑LNG procurement to offset a 40% supply cut from Qatar, which has jeopardised domestic urea production. Petronet LNG invoked force majeure after tankers failed to reach Ras Laffan amid the West Asia conflict. The first procurement phase is expected to close by Tuesday, with global tenders for urea already drawing strong interest. Officials aim to rebuild fertilizer inventories ahead of the Kharif planting season, which peaks in May.
India Post will launch premium “24 Speed Post” and “48 Speed Post” services on March 17, 2026, offering next‑day and two‑day document delivery between six major metros. A new “24 Speed Post Parcel” product adds next‑day parcel delivery with weight‑based tariffs up to 5 kg. The offerings target both retail...
Macro: Generative AI boosts retail margins via supply‑chain automation. Leaders: WMT, TGT. Risk: AI discovery can divert share from opaque retailers. Trade: Buy WMT. 📈 — Viktor Kopylov, PhD, CFA More insights: t.me/si14Kopylov
The Port of Piraeus has launched a cooperation with Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) following the inaugural call of the M/V Tourmaline Ace at its car terminal. The vessel arrived with roughly 1,000 vehicles bound for the Greek market, marking the...
Drewry’s World Container Index jumped 8% to $2,123 per 40‑foot container, driven by strong Asia‑Europe freight gains and continued Transpacific growth. Shanghai‑Rotterdam spot rates surged 19%, while Shanghai‑Genoa rose 10%, reflecting heightened demand on key lanes. Carriers limited capacity, announcing...
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗲𝗮𝗽𝗼𝗻 𝗰𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗶𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗛𝗼𝗿𝗺𝘂𝘇 𝗶𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝗮 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗹𝗲. 𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝗮 𝘀𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘀𝗵𝗲𝗲𝘁. Here's something most supply chain professionals don't fully appreciate — and probably should. Iran doesn't need to physically block the world's most critical oil chokepoint. They just need to...
Lithium-ion battery blazes imperil fragile supply chains, warns Los Angeles port chief https://t.co/6hprhROZuE via @ft
MSC has overhauled the rotation of its Koala service linking Northeast Asia and Australia. The southbound call at Jakarta is being dropped in favor of a Singapore stop, and a second northbound call at Adelaide has been added. The revised...
COLUMN: While the price of Brent and WTI crudes remain well below their record high, the cost of fuel oil has surged above the 2022 and 2008 peaks. The surge is a big problem for the workhorse of globalisation: the container...
Carriers should stay in the Midwest, where the conditions are extremely tight, while the West Coast remains weak
Lloyd’s Register has awarded type approval and technical assurance to GIT Coatings’ next‑generation graphene‑based hull coating, XGIT‑FORCE. The approval confirms compliance with IMO’s Convention on the Control of Harmful Anti‑Fouling Systems and validates the coating’s hard foul‑release performance. GIT Coatings...
CMA CGM has signed a charter agreement to secure 50 TEU on each sailing of Neoliner Origin, the sail‑powered container vessel operated by Neoline Armateurs. The ship, with a deadweight of roughly 5,300 tonnes and a capacity of about 265...
"Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Saturday said the Strait of Hormuz is open and that the strategic route is only closed to the US and Israeli vessels" Are ships and tankers moving? If not, then where is the problem? Look...
Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) has added two dedicated shuttle services between Klaipeda, Lithuania and St. Petersburg, Russia, bolstering its Baltic feeder network. Baltic Loop 3 will run weekly with a 3,000‑TEU vessel, while Baltic Loop 12 will operate every five days using...
Electronic warfare (EW) has become the backbone of modern military operations, turning the electromagnetic spectrum into a decisive battlespace. The performance of EW hardware hinges on rare‑earth‑based components—neodymium‑iron‑boron and samarium‑cobalt magnets for antenna steering, power generation, and high‑temperature stability, plus...
The Port of Rotterdam Authority and Evos Rotterdam have agreed to build a new inland shipping quay to accommodate Evos’s terminal expansion in Europoort. The expansion adds five storage tanks, boosting capacity by 67,500 cubic metres for methanol, ethanol and...
Breakdown of @POTUS statement: 1️⃣Allied warships took over the Red Sea after Operation Prosperity Guardian in Yemen. Shipping traffic did not return. 2️⃣If they can still send a drone, mine or missile, than you have not destroyed 100%. While the...
Maersk announced a new Peak Season Surcharge (PSS) for cargo moving from Asia Pacific to South Africa and Mauritius, effective 1 April 2026. The surcharge is $500 per 20‑foot dry container and $1,000 per 40‑foot container. It applies only to non‑spot bookings...
A decade ago, a CFO of a mega fleet told me I knew nothing about the industry because I called trucking a commodity. Commodities are priced based on supply and demand and truckload services are fungible between motor carriers - I.e....
Trucking is in a great spot right now. We don’t know what the escalation in Iran or surging oil markets will do to the momentum, but for now, this is a trucker’s market. In some ways, slower momentum may be better in...
Poland’s state‑owned railway PKP has joined a consortium to develop and test an autonomous passenger train using Automatic Train Operation technology. The pilot will run on the WKD Line 48 between Podkowa Leśna and Milanówek, starting with a digital‑twin simulation followed by...
The episode discusses Kroger's deployment of Corvus Robotics' autonomous inventory drones, called Corvus 1, in sub‑freezing warehouse environments to perform cycle counts without human intervention. Hosts Chris and Jen highlight how the drones operate without Wi‑Fi, markers, or infrastructure changes,...
Prices for key compound‑semiconductor metals have surged, with tungsten, tantalum and molybdenum doubling and gallium climbing 123% to $2,100 per kilogram. The spike follows China’s late‑2024 gallium export ban to the United States and is amplified by the Middle East...
Port Klang is Malaysia’s primary maritime gateway and one of the world’s busiest container ports, handling millions of TEUs annually through its Westports and Northport terminals. Situated 40 km from Kuala Lumpur on the Strait of Malacca, it serves as a...
The UK Ministry of Defence has awarded a £68,890 contract to Shropshire‑based Beaverfit for a temporary, container‑based storage and working facility at HM Naval Base Clyde. The solution comprises eight ISO containers fitted with a canopy, creating a covered engineering...
C.H. Robinson disclosed that its AI platform is built on a proprietary logistics dataset exceeding 100 trillion data points collected over decades. The Lean AI operating system embeds intelligence across core workflows such as pricing, routing, and invoicing, with hundreds...
Germany and India sign new deals to deepen critical minerals cooperation across mining, processing, and recycling. https://www.metalnomist.com/2026/03/germany-india-strengthen-critical.html
Because some folks seem confused: I think it’s really bad that shipping through the Strait of Hormuz is halted, and it would be better for pretty well everyone (except Russia) if traffic resumes It will be utterly miserable for billions of...
HFCL Ltd. has secured a long‑term supply agreement with a global multinational corporation to provide high‑fibre‑count optical fiber cables (OFC) worth approximately USD 1.10 billion through December 2030. The contract will deliver multi‑million fibre‑kilometre volumes each year, marking HFCL’s first multi‑year OFC deal...
A barrel of oil lost anywhere is a barrel lost everywhere. It’s a global market and acute scarcity in the Middle East/Asia will inevitably spike prices in North America as markets work to incentivize cargoes to fill the hole. US foreign policy...
A case study in how tariffs can change the bilateral trade balance but not the global trade balance -- the US is now importing a ton of computers, but essentially zero of those are registering in customs as Chinese made 1/...
🚨Mar 14 Hormuz Update🚨 1️⃣Confirmed attacks: 20 2️⃣Attacks last 24 hrs:0 3️⃣Passage last 24 hrs: 2 4️⃣Average passage: 138 5️⃣Electronic interference: widespread https://t.co/nQ4ZTet45o
Let's talk about how this works as it will not be a unified convoy operation, probably. If it is like the Red Sea, then they will escort the ships they have a national interest in, only. https://t.co/FxZMYvlZSu
The ATA will see this and then look you dead in the eye and tell you that there’s a driver shortage https://t.co/X7QcsVTiJ5
🚨Strait of Hormuz Disruptions🚨 Implications of Global Trade and Development by @UNCTAD 1️⃣Energy Surge 2️⃣Soaring Shipping Crisis 3️⃣Insurance Spikes 4️⃣Fertilizer & Food Security 5️⃣Insurance Spikes & Higher Borrowing Costs https://t.co/SxnLDTDmwG
The barge fire on Delaware Bay has been extinguished and the scene turned over to the salvors. https://t.co/uqBwjXnG5z
What will it take for a shipowner to run the Strait? $500,000/day charter rate. The crews receive a war risk bonus of 100% their daily rate. The minimum wage for seafarers is $680/month. So the $22.67/day extra is a small drop in the bucket...
Fire at UAE's major Fujairah oil hub, as Iran vows retaliation for US attack on Kharg Island https://t.co/5FZnHQsJ4j
Free trade for my inputs; tariffs for my competitors. A tale as old as time.
Lured by Profits, Some Shipowners Brave Mines and Missiles to Sneak Oil Past Iran https://t.co/rCFiJE3YzS
The gov't says only 6% of eligible companies have registered their payment details to receive tariff refunds. $166B in refunds at stake. People hate money.
36 bulk carrier transits of the Strait of Hormuz Of around 240 bulkers stranded in the Arabian Gulf nearly 20% have transited out via the Strait of Hormuz since the Iran war started says Signal Ocean https://t.co/tnMA4QjJ1W
Did the Greek tanker owner pay in Chines yuan? What will Iran’s payment demand mean to the petrodollar? And the quantity of ships stuck in the Strait?
"One thing becoming clear: tariffs on foreign imports didn't result in an increase in manufacturing payrolls (and may have directly resulted in the opposite)." 🙀 https://t.co/zvrbKgPxg3 https://t.co/h5DLBYPjf6
“Wipe the whole thing and start all over.” In reference to the self-certification of truck driver schools. It’s one of the most ludicrous things that the government has ever done in trucking and that is saying a lot.
"The US Department of Commerce has cut anti-dumping duties on 13 Italian pasta brands following an investigation into alleged export undercutting, Italy's Foreign Ministry announced." https://t.co/2KrLcSuyUY https://t.co/7S8ssbunhj
I am looking forward to the day when the ATA publishes a new report showing how many excess truck drivers the industry has. We have a glut, not a shortage.
I missed this project44 press release from earlier this week - Strait of Hormuz Closure Triggers 360% Surge in Ocean Freight Diversions https://t.co/u3NrIui3y3 project 44 Insights - https://t.co/fZoIuMEoDt
Iranian tankers back to loading at Kharg this morning despite yesterday’s US strikes on the island, which currently stages the vast majority of Iranian exports.
Saudi Aramco is loading simultaneously 5 crude oil tankers in Yanbu and Al Mujjaiz terminals on the Red Sea coast. I don’t think that’s happened ever before.
