CONTAINER shipping lines in the Transpacific Stabilization Agreement (TSA) are implementing a guideline peak season surcharge (PSS) of US$400 per 40-foot container from Asia to all destinations in the United States effective August 1, the group announced last Monday.
TSA cited positive signals on consumer confidence for the second half of 2013 and healthy consumer spending data in the second quarter that suggest a likely bump for Asian imports in coming months, prompting its member cargo carriers to prepare for a potentially healthy peak season.
The TSA carriers announced the guideline peak season surcharge as they began planning their individual vessel and equipment allocations to meet back-to-school and holiday retail cargo demand.
“It is hard to say at this point what the size and the timing of the peak will be, but lines are expecting a defined peak period and want to be prepared,” said TSA executive administrator Brian Conrad.
“That means having the necessary vessel and equipment assets in place, the right mix of services, and their costs adequately covered to quickly address contingencies,” he said.
TSA lines reported gains from the most recent round of Asia-U. freight rate increases taken on July 1, but said results still fall short of overall revenue objectives for 2013-14 service contracts, so they will be weighing the need for further initiatives later this summer.
TSA is a research and discussion forum of major container shipping lines serving the trade from Asia to ports and inland points in the US.
The group members are APL Ltd., Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd. (K Line), China Shipping Container Lines, Maersk Line, CMA-CGM, Mediterranean Shipping Co.,COSCO Container Lines Ltd., Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK Line), Evergreen Line, Orient Overseas Container Line Ltd., Hanjin Shipping Co. Ltd. , Yangming Marine Transport Corp., Hapag-Lloyd AG, and Zim Integrated Shipping Services.
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