Global container shipping reliability has improved in 2025, but the gains are fragile. In this episode, we examine what’s really driving the numbers, why performance is already slipping, and what shippers should expect as they plan for 2026.

In this episode, produced with the support of OntegosCloud (https://www.ontegos.cloud/), we break down the latest reliability data from Sea-Intelligence and Xeneta, analyse the widening performance gap between carriers and alliances, and look at how capacity growth, orderbooks, freight rates and potential Suez Canal routing changes could affect service consistency in the months ahead.

Industry experts Nils Roche (Solvens Advisory; ex-CMA CGM, Maersk, PIL) and Kathy Liu (VP Global Sales & Marketing, Dimerco Express Group) share their insights on shipper concerns, possible congestion scenarios, and the risks of renewed market volatility.

In this episode:

This is essential viewing for importers, exporters, freight forwarders and supply chain professionals who rely on stable ocean schedules and need clarity on the risks ahead.

#ContainerShipping #OceanFreight #ScheduleReliability #SupplyChain #Logistics #FreightMarket #ShippingIndustry #Maersk #HapagLloyd #SuezCanal

Paul Berger of The Wall Street Journal’s Logistics Report joins the Freight Buyers’ Club to break down the biggest supply chain stories to watch in 2026 — from tariff battles and port policy shifts to the deepening US trucking recession, the crane crackdown, EV trucking setbacks, Canada–US trade flows, and what reopening the Suez Canal could mean for global shipping.

We cover the forces reshaping global trade, why supply chains remain so volatile, and how policy moves out of Washington and Beijing could impact shippers, forwarders, carriers and cargo owners through 2026.

This episode was produced with the support of OntegosCloud, the freight forwarder profitability specialists.

#SupplyChain #Logistics #GlobalTrade #FreightMarket #WSJ

A deep dive into the 2026 freight outlook, the return of Suez routes, China+1 manufacturing shifts, capacity risks and what shippers must prepare for next year. Produced with the support of Dimerco Express Group [https://dimerco.com/].

It’s the Freight Buyers’ Club Holiday Special — a festive wrap-up of a year that delivered more plot twists than a Christmas soap marathon. From tariff shocks to China+1 shifts, Red Sea detours, booming Vietnam factories and air cargo refusing to behave “normally”… 2025 kept shippers on their toes and clutching their eggnog.

To make sense of it all, Mike King is joined by a top-tier panel of industry heavyweights:

Together they break down the winners, losers and big surprises of 2025 — and offer a straight-talking look at what freight buyers must prepare for in 2026. Expect sharp insights, a bit of humour, and just enough holiday spirit to take the edge off another volatile year in global logistics.

In this special we cover:

If you're planning your 2026 strategy, pour yourself a holiday drink and plug in — this is your end-of-year sanity check.

Special thanks to Dimerco Express Group for supporting this holiday edition of The Freight Buyers’ Club.

Download Dimerco’s China+1 Logistics Playbook
 Master International Growth

A Legal and Logistical Playbook for Global Expansion Success, with Expert Legal Insight From Addleshaw Goddard

https://dimerco.com/ebooks/global-business-expansion-playbook/

#FreightBuyersClub #2026FreightOutlook #SupplyChain #Logistics #ContainerShipping #SuezCanal #ChinaPlusOne #China1 #Tariffs #AirCargo #VietnamManufacturing #GlobalTrade #FreightRates #Dimerco #ShippingIndustry #SupplyChainStrategy #MaritimeLogistics

Air cargo wasn’t supposed to look this strong. Tariffs, the end of de minimis, political whiplash, war, and supply chain reshuffles all pointed to a difficult year. But the opposite happened.

In this Freight Buyers Club air cargo special — produced with the support of Dimerco Express Group — Mike King breaks down why the market held up, how shippers and carriers adapted, and what the data really says about the year ahead.

We hear from industry leaders on:
• Why air cargo defied expectations
• The impact of US tariffs and the end of de minimis
• China vs Southeast Asia sourcing shifts
• E-commerce, AI hardware demand and capacity rerouting
• Anchorage and Miami’s record volumes
• The 2026 market outlook: risks, growth drivers and unknowns

Featuring:

Glyn Hughes, Director- General, TIACA

Andrea Nicole Wilson, VP, Florida Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association

Sean Dolan, CEO, Northlink Aviation

Dimitrios “Jimmy” Nares, Section Chief, Cargo Development, Miami International Airport

Brandon Fried, Executive Director, The Airforwarders Association

Jaime Alvarez, Director of Cargo, Copa Airlines

If you want straight-talking analysis on air cargo and global trade, this one’s for you.

Subscribe to Freight Buyers Club for more interviews and explainers.

Reach out to Dimerco Express Group here: https://dimerco.com/

#AirCargo #AirFreight #SupplyChain #Logistics #GlobalTrade #FreightForwarding #EcommerceLogistics #TradePolicy #AviationCargo #CargoAirlines #SupplyChainNews

Hamburg is gearing up for a turbulent few years in global container shipping. In this episode, Mike King speaks with Mathias Schulz, Director of Communications at Port of Hamburg Marketing, about the port’s major 2025–26 investment programme — including the enlarged turning basin, terminal expansion, and Hamburg’s push to speed up mega-ship operations.

Schultz explains how Hamburg is managing congestion, the impact of strikes across the Northern Range, and why a potential reopening of the Suez Canal to container traffic could trigger fresh chaos. We also dig into shifting trade flows: Asia booming, the transatlantic lane slumping, and the Baltic region surprising on the upside.

With rail bottlenecks, digitalisation plans, and the uncertainty facing European consumers, Hamburg is preparing for a complex 2026. Schultz lays out what shippers, forwarders, and carriers should expect next.

This episode is sponsored by Ontegos Cloud.

#HamburgPort #ContainerShipping #OceanFreight #SupplyChain #PortCongestion #MegaShips #SuezCanal #ShippingNews

TIACA Director General Glyn Hughes joins Mike King in Miami on the sidelines of transport logistic Americas for an after-hours beer and a straight-talking look at the state of global air cargo. Fresh from TIACA’s first Air Cargo Forum in Abu Dhabi, Hughes breaks down why the sector keeps outperforming despite tariffs, geopolitics and chaotic trade policy.

He explains how shifting e-commerce flows, China+1 production, and a new “US+1” consumption trend are reshaping supply chains. We get into freighter tightness, belly shortages, spot-rate behaviour, and why yields look set to hold steady into 2026.

Hughes also gives the inside track on TIACA’s new partnership with a startup incubator, the rise of Middle Eastern hubs, and how regulatory and geopolitical messiness is now baked into global trade.

Plus: why flexibility is air cargo’s secret weapon, which airports to watch, and the one policy change that could transform the industry overnight.

Another straight-talking episode of the Freight Buyers’ Club — sponsored by Dimerco Express Group [https://dimerco.com/].

#AirCargo #AirFreight #Logistics #SupplyChain #Freight #TIACA #GlynHughes #EcommerceLogistics #GlobalTrade #FreightBuyersClub #DimercoExpressGroup

Freight buyers are entering 2026 with a rare advantage — a genuine buyer’s market.
In this clip from Container Shipping 2026: Strategies Every Freight Buyer Needs Now, host Mike King speaks with Mark Chadwick (President, Global Shippers’ Association) and Chantal McRoberts (Director, Drewry Supply Chain Advisors) about how shippers can negotiate smarter, reduce risk, and secure stronger Transpacific contracts for the year ahead.

⚓ Produced with the kind support of Dimerco Express Group
Watch the full episode: https://youtu.be/ERHtDwtarOg

#ContainerShipping #FreightBuyersClub #FreightContracts #FreightRates #ShippingMarket #FreightStrategy #DimercoExpressGroup #SupplyChain #Logistics #TranspacificTrade

South Africa’s logistics system is fighting for its life — corruption, collapse, and political paralysis have left ports and railways in chaos. But could a real turnaround finally be underway?

Host Mike King has just returned from a fact-finding tour of South Africa to uncover the good, the bad, and the ANC. In this hard-hitting explainer, Mike dives deep into:
How Transnet fell apart under state capture and political cronyism
The catastrophic impact on ports, rail, and exporters
The reforms under new Transnet CEO Michelle Phillips
⚙️ The $7 billion recovery plan — and early signs of genuine progress
How government and industry are finally pulling in the same direction
Why South Africa is now looking East, not West, for trade growth

Featuring insights from South Africa’s leading logistics experts — Peter Besnard, CEO of SAASOA, representing the nation’s ship operators and agents; Jacob van Rensburg, Head of Research and Development at the South African Association of Freight Forwarders (SAAFF); and Shabnum Dawood, CEO of DHL Global Forwarding South Africa — this episode is essential listening for anyone moving freight in or out of Africa.

️ Presented by Mike King
In partnership with freight forwarding profitability specialists OntegosCloud
Subscribe for straight-talking freight intelligence — without the spin.

Credit: Jacob Zuma by Ashraf Hendricks/GroundUp.

#SouthAfrica #Logistics #Transnet #FreightBuyersClub #Shipping #Ports #SupplyChain #AfricaTrade #OntegosCloud #MikeKing #FreightForwarding #Corruption #Ramaphosa

Freight buyers face another wild year ahead. Mike King speaks with Mark Chadwick and Chantal McRoberts about the 2026 container shipping market — contracts, rates, and risk management for those who want to stay one move ahead. Produced with the kind support of Dimerco Express Group.

Freight buyers are heading into 2026 facing a container shipping market full of volatility — from emissions uncertainty and patchwork regulation to rate swings and fragile carrier contracts.

In this episode, Mike King gets straight answers from two of the industry’s most experienced voices:

Together, they unpack what’s next for global shipping, how to manage freight risk, and what smart buyers are doing now to secure value, service, and stability for the year ahead.

In this episode:

If you want to understand the container shipping market outlook for 2026 — and how to plan, contract and negotiate smarter — this episode is for you.

Produced with the support of Dimerco Express Group [https://dimerco.com/]
More episodes, transcripts, and resources: https://www.thefreightbuyersclub.com

CHAPTERS 

00:00 Meet the Guests — Mark Chadwick & Chantal McRoberts 

02:49 IMO MEPC: The Emissions Deadlock 

08:25 Transpacific Market Mayhem 

19:54 Contracting Season — Freight Buyer Strategy 

27:44 Surcharges — The Love–Hate Relationship 

34:05 Global Container Market Analysis 

43:27 Outlook 2026 — Overcapacity, Alliances & Risk 

48.55 Quick-Fire Forecasts 

#ContainerShipping #FreightBuyersClub #ShippingMarket #FreightRates #SupplyChain #Logistics #DimercoExpressGroup #FreightContracts #GlobalTrade #Shippers #MaritimeIndustry #ShippingOutlook2026

Global trade is booming again in 2025 — the fastest growth since 2010. In this episode of The Freight Buyers’ Club, supported by Ontegos Cloud, Mike King talks with DHL Express CEO John Pearson about the new DHL Global Connectedness Tracker and what it reveals about today’s trade surge. From China’s export expansion and Africa’s growing trade power, to tariffs, de-minimis changes, and shifting supply chains, Pearson explains how global commerce is evolving and why globalisation is far from dead.
Essential listening for anyone in freight forwarding, logistics, or international trade.

Full Description

DHL’s latest Global Connectedness Tracker shows global trade growth at its fastest pace since 2010.
In this episode of The Freight Buyers’ Club, supported by Ontegos Cloud, the freight forwarder profitability specialist, host Mike King speaks with John Pearson, CEO of DHL Express, about what’s driving the remarkable rebound in global trade and supply chains in 2025.

They discuss China’s export boom, Africa’s rising influence in international logistics, and why globalisation is far from dead despite tariffs, shifting trade routes, and new supply chain pressures. Pearson explains how DHL is adapting to changing trade lanes, what record trade-lane deviations really mean, and why the world’s buyers and sellers are proving more creative and resilient than ever.

Expect clear insights on:

The Freight Buyers’ Club — where the people who move the world’s goods talk straight about what’s really happening in global logistics and international trade.