For at least one month, August, the Port of New York and New Jersey was the busiest container port in the U.S. as it nudged ahead of longtime leader Port of Los Angeles in total 20-foot-equivalent units processed.

Container volumes at West Coast ports are beginning to moderate but remain at a strong pace, while facilities on the Gulf and East coasts are seeing increases.

CHICAGO — White House Supply Chain Envoy Stephen Lyons said Sept. 20 he believes the recently negotiated tentative agreement between the five Class I railroads and unions — representing 150,000 railroad locomotive engineers, conductors and railroad workers — will be ratified.

Truck tonnage in August surged 7.4% when measured against the same month a year ago, and on a sequential basis it rose 2.8% from July, according to American Trucking Associations.

CHICAGO — Two former White House officials say the world’s supply chain has experienced unprecedented disruption the last 2½ years because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A deal has been reached between union workers and six Class I railroads, averting a threatened strike that could have snarled the nation’s freight and passenger rail service.

As shippers and retailers head into the peak shopping season, ongoing labor negotiations are being closely watched for any signs of disruption, which experts say would have a huge impact on the U.S. economy.

The upcoming retail holiday season is likely to see slower sales below the surging pace of 2021 as the U.S. economy’s pace of growth slows to a much lower level, which will have an impact on the amount of freight shipped by trucking.

With a Sept. 16 deadline looming, pressure is mounting on the nation’s major freight railroads and the unions to reach an agreement and avoid a potentially crippling strike or lockout.

The White House port and supply chain envoy met with Port of Oakland officials Aug. 29 at the California complex to discuss the facilitiy's ongoing supply chain issues.