Port workers from the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) participate in a strike outside the Norfolk International Terminal (NIT) in Norfolk, Virginia, U.S., October 1, 2024. REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez

White House sides with union as US dockworker strike enters second day

New York | Reuters — President Joe Biden’s administration heaped pressure on U.S. port employers to raise their offer to secure a labour deal with dockworkers on strike for a second day on Wednesday, choking half the country’s ocean shipping. The strike by the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) union has blocked goods from food to […] Read more










Grain is loaded onto ships for export at a port on the Parana River near Rosario, Argentina on Jan. 31, 2017. (File photo: Reuters/Marcos Brindicci)

Bulk ocean freight rates fall from highs despite uncertainty

Container rates have climbed higher as Houthi attacks in the Red Sea have caused diversions

The Baltic Dry Index (BDI), a major indicator of bulk shipping rates, has dropped sharply over the past month after hitting 18-month highs in early December. Meanwhile, container rates have climbed higher over the same period as attacks by Houthi militants in the Red Sea have caused many shipping companies to divert their vessels.