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The day’s most important moves across every mode — air, rail, road, ocean and the trade that ties them together.
| ● On the Wire |
TUE · SEP 15 · 2026 |
4 stories |
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Avoid congestion and costly delays. Seattle-Tacoma’s fluid terminal operations, on-dock rail and 2-3 day rail dwell will speed your cargo to its final destination.
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OCEAN · CONTAINER SHIPPING
BY STUART CHIRLS · AMERICAN SHIPPER · SEP 14, 2026
The Port of Long Beach moved 919,992 TEUs in August, its busiest August ever and fifth-busiest month on record, with imports up 3.6% to 456,100 TEUs and exports up 4% to 99,754 TEUs, pushing year-to-date volume through eight months to 6.68 million TEUs, a 1.3% gain over 2025.
| THE TAKE — THE TAKE — Export volume growing right alongside imports is the more notable number here, since outbound capacity has lagged for most of the year at other gateways — shippers relying on Long Beach for backhaul cargo should see this as a sign the equipment-repositioning math is finally improving on this coast. |
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RAIL · INTERMODAL
South Carolina Ports and Norfolk Southern launched daily intermodal service between Charleston and Huntsville, Alabama on Sept. 11, adding to Charleston’s existing express lanes into Greer, Dillon, Memphis, Atlanta, Birmingham, Nashville, Charlotte and Louisville on a rail network that already carries about 25% of the port’s container volume.
| THE TAKE — THE TAKE — Targeting Huntsville specifically points to Charleston chasing the region’s aerospace, defense and advanced-manufacturing import demand rather than general cargo — shippers serving north Alabama and Middle Tennessee manufacturers sourcing from China and Germany now have a same-day rail alternative to trucking from Charleston. |
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RAIL · M&A
BNSF, CPKC and CSX filed competing conditions with the Surface Transportation Board against the proposed $85 billion Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern merger, with BNSF seeking 824 miles of trackage rights over NS’s Premier Corridor and a neutral Gulf Coast switching terminal, CPKC targeting the Kansas City-St. Louis corridor while trying to block NS’s Wylie, Texas terminal deal, and CSX asking for Kansas City access via UP; all three urged the STB to reject the merger outright.
| THE TAKE — THE TAKE — When three rival Class Is all file for trackage rights while simultaneously asking the STB to kill the deal, they’re hedging against approval rather than betting against it — shippers should treat these filings as a preview of what competitive-access conditions could look like if the merger goes through, not just opposition rhetoric. |
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AIR CARGO · LEADERSHIP
Saltchuk-owned Northern Air Cargo named Mark Lester, previously of Alaska Aerospace Corp. and Doss Aviation, as president and CEO effective Sept. 21, succeeding interim leader Dave Karp; the carrier recently exited long-haul routes and returned its Boeing 767 freighters to focus on intra-Alaska and Seattle service with three 737 freighters, posting $144 million in revenue and $15 million operating profit over the past 12 months.
| THE TAKE — THE TAKE — Bringing in a CEO with an aerospace-strategy background rather than a cargo-airline veteran suggests Saltchuk wants fresh thinking on fleet planning after the 767 exit, not just steady-state operations — shippers using NAC for intra-Alaska freight should watch whether Lester’s arrival signals further fleet or network changes beyond the recent downsizing. |
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| Get a behind-the-scenes look at one of North America’s leading trade gateways. This short video shows how the Northwest Seaport Alliance is creating opportunities, moving cargo, and keeping supply chains connected: Watch the video. |
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OCT 27–28, 2026 · THE SIGNAL, CHATTANOOGA · CHATTANOOGA, TN
FreightWaves’ flagship event blends rapid-fire tech demos and world-class speakers with the most legendary networking in logistics. Join 1,000+ freight and logistics experts, industry leaders, entrepreneurs and innovators for a definitive look at the year ahead. Come for the insights, stay for the celebration and leave with the connections that will define your 2027.
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American Shipper · The Daily — published weekdays
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