C.H. Robinson diverting some US customers' cargo away from Canadian ports (updated)

CH Robinson Worldwide

19/08/2024 16:59

(Adds details throughout)
       Aug 19 (Reuters) - U.S. freight forwarder C.H. Robinson
 CHRW.O  said on Monday it was diverting some of its U.S.
customers' ocean cargo away from Canadian ports as the threat of
a rail strike looms.
    It said roughly 80% of its customers who had switched are
now exporting through Los Angeles/Long Beach ports and the rest
through Seattle/Tacoma ports.
    Canadian railroads, Canadian National  CNR.TO  and Canadian
Pacific Kansas City  CP.TO , are bracing for a possible work
stoppage by the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference Union.
    "Now that a strike notice has been declared, some of our
Canadian export customers are starting to ship time-sensitive
goods to the ports by truck to avoid containers being stuck at
rail terminals during a strike," C.H. Robinson's Canada VP Scott
Shannon said in a statement to Reuters.
    C.H. Robinson is lining up extra trucking capacity on both
sides of the border, as volumes are expected to shift to
highways following the disruption.
    A strike, which could come as early as August 22, brings a
level of uncertainty for shippers in both U.S. and Canada,
forcing them to think about over-the-road options.

 (Reporting by Abhinav Parmar in Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim
Zahid and Sriraj Kalluvila)
 ((Abhinav.Parmar@thomsonreuters.com;))