Shipments in transit are subjected to numerous perils; goods may be damaged in a storm or fire, stolen by ghosts in the night, involved in a collision, or just plain mishandled, much like the ill-fated journey in “Deliverance.” To help protect against financial loss or another frightful travesty, shippers should consider obtaining Shipper’s Interest Cargo […]

Imagine receiving a message from an ocean carrier notifying you that all the cargo aboard a vessel, including yours, has been impounded—and the only way you can retrieve it is a boat load of cash or a guarantee at the very least. Sounds like extortion, right? Well, it’s actually a very common event in maritime […]

Pay attention, Agents… Your mission, should you choose to accept it, involves decoding the latest updates to U.S. Customs Bonds—the unofficial and secret weapon that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and other Partner Government Agencies (PGA) have at their disposal to safeguard our national trade interests. Much like the legendary MI6 Agent 007 from […]

Lately, the international trade newsroom has cast a bright spotlight–or should we say dark shadow–on some of the shadier business practices allegedly leveraged by certain popular e-commerce platforms. If you were one of the 123 million viewers that tuned into Superbowl 58, chances are you caught a glimpse of at least one of the six […]

By the dawn’s early light on March 26, we all saw that the Francis Scott Key Bridge had lost its perilous fight with the Maersk Dali. And then we viewed countless videos of the violent carnage, somehow almost graceful, surely caused by bombs bursting in air and not a bump from a boat! Our second response […]

Logistics contingency plans are just a fancy way of conveying the importance of businesses being prepared when the ship hits the fan—like if the Ever Given lodges itself at the Suez Canal or a viral pandemic hits planet Earth like a meteor, somehow super-charging global consumerism.  In 2021, an estimated 40% of all global ocean […]

Chinese New Year (CNY) is just around the corner—which means the mundane rhythm of everyday life will soon give way to a vibrant celebration of family and cultural traditions. Beginning Saturday, February 10, 2024, not a single soul will be found in factories or offices, as the Chinese workforce enjoys a week (or more) of […]

Editor’s Note: First, let us say that the humanitarian impacts and terrifying possibilities of a raging geopolitical storm leading to a global conflict are what really matter when eyeing Gaza. That is a concern well beyond this blog! We write this in the spirit of the annual budgets we are preparing (or will soon be […]

In a world already fraught with frightening freight challenges, shippers are now grappling with a bone-chilling new threat that haunts their every waking moment—a rising number of cargo thefts. Statistics reveal a total of 566 incidents documented this year, marking a spine-tingling 56% year-over-year increase. These thieves, driven by an insatiable appetite for cash, target […]

After nearly 25 years, on July 1, 2020, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) will be officially replaced by the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). Now that the implementation of the USMCA has arrived, it is more important than ever to make sure you and your supply chain are ready for the changes. These modifications will […]

As of May 27, 2020, the United States Trade Representatives (USTR) has published 32 rounds of Section 301 exclusions covering Lists 1, 2, 3 and 4a products. The exclusions include more than 2,000 possible items that, if produced in Mainland China and imported into the United States, may be eligible for an exclusion from the […]

Whether you’re a crowd-funding startup, or a first time seller on one of Amazon’s multi-national programs, it is easy to see that ecommerce is changing the way we purchase – and fast. Rapidly expanding markets with “limitless” opportunities; who wouldn’t want to take the plunge?  But beware the dangers that lurk beneath the surface – […]

JOC’s Annual Review and Outlook outlines the major challenges, opportunities and trends in the global transportation and logistics industry via reports from the editorial staff and insight from the industry’s top players. Major segments highlighted include maritime, trucking, rail and intermodal, air cargo, government and logistics. Contributors have years of experience and range from CEOs […]

It’s the ole’ Trojan horse scenario. Just when you think Customs is being helpful sending out Informed Compliance Letters to your business with information to “assist” your company with ensuring compliance, they will state in the document that since this information has been provided to your company, violations that may occur in the future could […]

If you are (or plan to be) an Amazon seller importing physical goods from overseas, we hope you took some time watch our Secrets of Importing Your Amazon Product WEBINAR hosted by Shapiro’s very own FBA Manager, Nicola Phillips Malaney. In case you didn’t get your fill of logistics goodness during the webinar, we’re back to […]

NO!  WHY ME?! Just a few phrases you may use when a shipment gets pulled for a customs examination, or if you’ve been in this industry long enough, it’s more like a slew of curse words that you wouldn’t dare speak in front of your mom. But don’t worry, Shapiro is here to clear things up. […]

JOC’s Annual Review and Outlook outlines the major challenges, opportunities and trends in the global transportation and logistics industry via reports from the editorial staff and insight from the industry’s top players. Major segments highlighted include maritime, trucking, rail and intermodal, air cargo, government and logistics. Contributors have years of experience and range from CEOs […]

Imagine you are back in 4th grade and happen to be the pudding czar of the elementary school’s most lucrative snack trade (you know; pudding for just about anything – mostly lunch money – strawberry Gusher’s for Cheetos, those little fudge elf cookies for string cheese and everything else that falls within the trade; don’t […]

On Friday, December 4th, a decade-long congressional standoff on federal transportation funding came to an end with the signing of Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act by President Obama. The landmark legislation allocates $305 billion dollars to America’s multimodal transportation network over the next five years, a marked change from the short-term one to two […]

Like many of you, I just saw The Big Short and was appropriately shocked and sickened by the greed, the fraud, the cynicism, and the strong feeling that history will simply repeat itself in the coming years. And, just to brighten this blog a bit, let me add that I was also amazed that the […]