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A global shortage of shipping containers that has sent ocean freight rates skyrocketing shows signs of easing, according to an index that tracks the steel boxes used to transport 90% of the global trade in goods.

A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S, the world’s largest container carrier, is working at full capacity and can’t yet see a peak in freight rates that have already been propelled to record highs by pandemic consumer spending.

Container shipping, the backbone of the global trading system, is showing signs of fatigue as the pandemic descends into its darkest days.

A containership owned by A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S was attacked off the West African coast, prompting the company to warn of a rising risk from piracy in the area.

LONG BEACH, Calif. — Ports throughout the United States are prepared to accept megaships carrying 18,000 TEUs or more, but while the larger vessels create efficiencies for maritime providers, they take more time to unload and can create bottlenecks for those at the port and the drivers hauling the loads. 

Add oil tankers breaking down at sea to the list of things shipping companies are worrying about as they brace for a once-in-a-generation overhaul to the kind of fuel the industry must consume.

Container ships just keep getting bigger and bigger. Today’s top dog, the OOCL Hong Kong, can carry a mind-boggling 21,413 boxes – far more than the largest ship ever to call on the Port of Hampton Roads.

Cargo chartering company King Ocean Services Ltd. has entered into a vessel-sharing agreement with Crowley Caribbean Services to offer less-than-containerload service between Port Everglades, Fla., and Central America.

West Coast seaport officials and trucking executives are monitoring Cosco Shipping’s $6.3 billion bid to purchase Orient Overseas International Ltd. to see how the consolidation would affect their businesses.

South Carolina ports topped an 11-year-old record for the 12 months ended June 30 by handling 2.14 million 20-foot-equivalent units of containerized freight.