What's behind the chip shortage?

Sep 17, 2021
Shortages happen when demand is greater than supply. When it comes to computer chips, there are problems on both sides of that equation.
Jens Schlueter/AFP via Getty Images

Import prices declined unexpectedly in August

Sep 15, 2021
These prices may be a bellwether of where domestic or worldwide inflation are headed, says Cornell economist Eswar Prasad.
A container vessel passes under the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge in New York. Although import prices eased in August, they were up 9% year over year.
Timothy A. Clary/AFP via Getty Images

Shipping cost index reaches 11-year high

Aug 25, 2021
The Baltic Dry Index tracks how much it costs to ship materials long distances.
A container ship is unloaded at the Port of Oakland in California. The Baltic Dry Index, which tracks the cost of shipping materials long distances, is at a high level amid congestion at Chinese ports.
Justin Sullivan via Getty Images

The world's largest container-shipping company wants to go green

Aug 24, 2021
Danish company Maersk said it has ordered eight vessels that run on green methanol, a carbon-neutral fuel.
In a step toward creating a carbon-neutral shipping fleet, Maersk will purchase eight vessels that run on green methanol.
Spencer Platt via Getty Images

What freight rail tells us about the economy

Aug 4, 2021
Trains are delivering shipping containers brimming with the imported products consumers are demanding. Rail can tell us about U.S. exports, too.
The U.S. has seen an uptick in intermodal train traffic over the first half of the year — that's when products travel in containers from ship to truck or train.
David McNew/Getty Images

Biden looks to curb the big business powers behind shipping and rail

Jul 9, 2021
An executive order could spur government regulators to address patterns of consolidation and high pricing.
A fully loaded cargo ship heads out to sea from New York Harbor on August 22, 2016 in New York City.
Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Despite e-commerce boom, a leading cardboard maker's profits fall

Jun 22, 2021
For DS Smith, higher demand from individual customers wasn't enough to offset a drop in corporate clients.
An estimated $171 billion in returns are expected from this holiday season, says a report from the National Retail Federation.
Sean Gallup/Getty Images

For public good, not for profit.

Will Britannia rule the waves in shipping's green revolution?

Jun 18, 2021
British entrepreneurs and innovators hope to cash in on the move to decarbonize commercial ships.
Some industry leaders believe that a large part of Britain’s maritime future lies in designing and building new systems to combat climate change.
STR/AFP via Getty Images

More and more shipping containers are falling into the sea

Apr 27, 2021
Increased demand for imported goods — and more treacherous weather — are among the reasons.
A fully-loaded container ship sits anchored in the San Francisco Bay in March.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

A freight time to be in shipping

Dec 21, 2020
In recent months, freight rates have been skyrocketing.
A truck carrying a cargo shipping container drives across a bridge in the Port of Long Beach on Dec. 14, 2020.
Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images