While tens of thousands of sports entertainment aficionados were throwing down less than a mile away at WrestleMania 34 events at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, a couple hundred participants in the 10th anniversary Cargo Connections Conference found themselves grappling with far more serious issues.

The logistics industry is expected to continue its rapid growth and tech giants Amazon and Uber saw the potential lying in this current situation. Last-mile delivery, trucking, automation - they have invested in a variety of logistic segments.

The ocean shipping industry demands customer-focused transformation, according to a top carrier executive speaking today [Monday, April 9] at the Cargo Connections Conference in New Orleans.

Responding to persistent congestion issues for truckers at Montreal’s marine terminals since early this year, leading stakeholders at Canada’s second biggest port have agreed to participate in a study into the cost of extending gate hours at the Port of Montreal.

Peter Friedmann, executive director of the Agriculture Transportation Coalition (AgTC), told AJOT that if President Trump imposes tariffs against China for intellectual property violations, “the impact on agricultural and forest product exports could be substantial [and] this will also adversely impact the shipment of exports going out on ships from U.S. ports.”

Hefty tariffs on U.S. imports of steel and aluminum have executives of Gulf ports gripped with wide-ranging concerns and uncertainty.

At a press conference staged at Deltaport, Canada’s largest container terminal located at the Port of Vancouver, federal Transport Minister Marc Garneau announced a formal review of Canada Port Authorities to optimize their role in the transportation system as strategic assets that support inclusive and sustainable growth and trade.

Gene Seroka, executive director of the Port of Los Angeles, told AJOT that collaboration with General Electric on a new digital information system will help boost productivity in 2018 after a record 2017 in which the Port continued to be number one in the United States.

Governors Phil Murphy (New Jersey) and Andrew Cuomo (New York) share equal blame with President Trump for failure to fund the $29 billion Gateway Tunnel.

Atlantic and Gulf Coast ports are gaining ground against the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach as well as other US West Coast ports, according to the Pacific Merchant Shipping Association (PMSA) West Coast Trade Report.