shipping

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New Amazon Idea: Ship Your Item Before You Order It

'Anticipatory shipping' system in the works

(Newser) - Can Amazon see into the future? The firm is betting that it can predict shoppers' needs so precisely that it can start shipping orders before they have even been placed. A patent filed by the retail giant last month outlines "anticipatory shipping," in which products will be boxed...

UPS, FedEx Ruined Some Christmases

Companies apologize after getting swamped by online rush

(Newser) - When it comes to delivering gifts, UPS and FedEx were lousy excuses for Santa this year. Both carriers suffered widespread delays that left many customers leaving IOUs under the tree, NBC News reports. Both companies explained that they'd simply underestimated the flood of online shopping orders coming their way—...

Giant Freighter Is First to Cross Northwest Passage

Danish bulk carrier makes milestone journey

(Newser) - Sure, scientists are nearly positive that humans are heating up the planet, but there's an upside: more efficient shipping. For the first time, a major freighter has crossed the Northwest Passage in the Arctic, reports the Toronto Globe and Mail . The 735-foot Nordic Orion achieved the feat this week...

Somalis No Longer World's Worst Pirates

Attacks off West Africa soaring

(Newser) - The pirate-infested waters of West Africa are now even more dangerous for seafarers than the rather more infamous seas around Somalia, according to an International Maritime Bureau report. West African pirates recorded attacks on 966 sailors last year, compared to 851 for Somali pirates—which was down 78% from the...

Open by 2050: North Pole Shipping Lanes

 Open by 2050: 
 Shipping Lanes 
 in North Pole 
in case you missed it
Mar 9, 2013 1:20 PM CST

Open by 2050: Shipping Lanes in North Pole

Climate change opening up China-Europe shortcut

(Newser) - Climate change has got its upside if you happen to own a shipping company. Researchers say that by 2050, the Arctic ice sheet will be weak enough for cargo ships to take the northern route between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans without the aid of icebreakers, the Guardian reports. Ships...

China Takes Over Key Pakistan Port

India alarmed by string of Chinese ports

(Newser) - China has taken over management of a major port in Pakistan in a move that gives it a potential naval base close to the Strait of Hormuz, reports Reuters . China paid most of the $248 million used to build the port of Gwadar on the Arabian Sea, aiming to slash...

FedEx Expects Big Holiday Season

Prediction seen as a positive sign for the economy

(Newser) - FedEx is expecting to ship 280 million packages between Thanksgiving and Christmas this year, a 13% improvement on last year's figures that means the Memphis-based company will hire 20,000 additional workers to handle the surge. FedEx attributed its growing shipment figures to the ever-increasing popularity of online shopping,...

Mississippi River Drying Up
 Mississippi River Drying Up  
Jul 30, 2012 6:16 PM CDT

Mississippi River Drying Up

Shipping industry shivers at the thought

(Newser) - The worst US drought in 50 years is making the mighty Mississippi River dry up and could curb shipping there altogether, reports Time . Dry conditions mean narrower, shallower passageways, so shippers are lightening their loads to avoid running aground. That could be huge, because 60% of the country's grain...

Ship Accidents Knock Countries Offline

Anchors cut undersea cables

(Newser) - At least nine countries have suffered telecom outages this month, following a pair of accidents in which ships severed essential undersea cables, the Wall Street Journal reports. In the most recent incident this weekend, a ship dragging its anchor off the coast of Kenya caught on and destroyed a fiber-optic...

Occupy Protest Partly Shuts Down Ports

Demonstrations hit California, Oregon, and Washington

(Newser) - Hundreds of Occupy Wall Street protesters turned out today for a demonstration that succeeded in partially shutting down some of the West Coast's busiest ports. Authorities closed two terminals in Portland after arresting two people with weapons who claimed to be heading for the protest, the AP reports, while...

Post Office to Slow Mail, Kill Next-Day Letter Delivery

Half of USPS mail processing centers to shut down this spring

(Newser) - Get ready to wait an extra day for the next DVD of The Wire: The mail is going to slow down. As part of its plan to save $3 billion, the cash-challenged US Postal Service will be closing roughly half of its 500 mail processing centers as soon as next...

Pirate Hostages Plead for Help in YouTube Video

Danes, Filipinos urge ship's owner to secure their freedom

(Newser) - A shipping industry group has released a harrowing video of Danish and Filipino seamen being held hostage by Somali pirates. The men, who were seized when pirates hijacked a Danish cargo ship in January, plead for their freedom in the video, which Save Our Seafarers says it uploaded to YouTube...

Flooding Closes Panama Canal
Flooding Closes
Panama Canal
Dec 9, 2010 2:42 AM CST

Flooding Closes Panama Canal

Canal shut for 3rd time in 96 years

(Newser) - Flooding has forced authorities to close the Panama Canal for only the third time since it opened in 1914. Officials say they hope to have the waterway, a conduit for close to 5% of all world trade, back open sometime today, CNN reports. The canal was shut down during the...

Walmart Rolls Out Free Shipping

No minimum purchase. Online retailers gulp.

(Newser) - Walmart just got cheaper: The retail giant today rolls out free shipping on its website with no minimum purchase, reports the New York Times. With cost-conscious consumers 55% somewhat likely to back out of a purchase if they have to pay for shipping, the move puts a ton of pressure...

19 Chinese Pirate Hostages Head Home After 4 Months

Captive sailors were fed nothing but spuds after June hijacking

(Newser) - Nineteen Chinese sailors have arrived back in their homeland after 4 months in harsh conditions as captives of Somali pirates. The men were fed nothing but boiled potatoes since the Golden Blessing was hijacked in June, AP reports. Pirates released the men and the ship after receiving a ransom from...

US Knew of, Didn't Close Air Cargo Security Gaps

Shipping lobby too worried about costs, delays

(Newser) - The US knew for decades that terrorists could easily sneak a bomb into the global cargo system, yet didn't act because of pressure from shipping companies worried that a tighter security net would cost too much and cause too many delays. One shipping lobby has in fact spent some $60...

Iran Skirts Sanctions With Ships Shell Game

US struggling to keep up with shipping dodges

(Newser) - As the UN prepares to vote on fresh sanctions against Iran, a New York Times investigation finds that the Islamic republic has evaded sanctions with an elaborate scheme of renaming ships and selling them to shell companies. Irisl, Iran's state-owned shipping firm, has sold off most of its fleet to...

Tanker in Danger of Breaking Up on Great Barrier Reef

Chinese coal-hauler was 9 miles outside shipping lane

(Newser) - A coal-laden ship that ran aground at full speed some 9 miles outside a shipping lane in protected waters was leaking oil on Australia's Great Barrier Reef and in danger of breaking apart, officials said today. Authorities fear an oil spill will damage the world's largest coral reef, which is...

Bickering Pirates Shoot Each Other Over $7M Ransom

Somalis had called on antipiracy force to fend off rivals

(Newser) - At least three Somali pirates have been killed fighting over the biggest ransom in the history of piracy. A gun battle broke in out the pirate haven of Harardhere last night after a record $7 million was paid to secure the release of the Greek supertanker Maran Centaurus, its $150...

Ships Take Up Arms Against Pirates
 Ships Take Up Arms 
 Against Pirates 
AHOY, MATEY
Jan 5, 2010 6:16 AM CST

Ships Take Up Arms Against Pirates

Maritime tradition fades amid rise in attacks

(Newser) - The maritime tradition of commercial shipping going unarmed is being abandoned in the face of the threat from Somali pirates. Shipping firms are hiring teams of guards—from $25,000 up—for the passage through the Gulf of Aden. Insurers are offering steep discounts to ships packing heat and security...

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