Longshore workers load Pasha's Jean Anne auto ship for transport between the U.S. West Coast and Hawai'i.
Unlike container ship operators in trade lanes linked to North America, which normally sign one-year contract agreements, operators serving the international automobile shipping market offer contracts lasting two to five-years, said an NYK Line executive. Multi-year contracts shield both parties from wild price fluctuations like those that plague the container trades when supply and demand conditions suddenly change. … Auto shippers are more concerned about longer-term issues such as marine terminal capacity, said an export logistics department manager at Ford Motor.