Grimaldi Group has signed an agreement with the Venice Port Authority and Lübeck Port Authority for creation of an intermodal connection via the ports of Venice and Lübeck, to connect points in Sweden, Finland and Russia with southern Italy and Greece.

The recent increase in container freight rates on major east-west trades is no more than a flimsy disguise for the "fundamental weakness" of the ocean shipping industry, according to ocean freight rate benchmarking and market intelligence provider Xeneta.

Inchcape Shipping Services has opened an office in Amsterdam, its second in the Netherlands.

This summer, dockworkers, truckers and railroads geared up for a surge of retail goods passing through U.S. ports that hasn't occurred. Imports are flat at major seaports on both coasts heading into peak shipping season, the stretch in late summer and early fall when retailers usually load up on imported toys, clothing and other merchandise to sell to holiday shoppers. If the trend holds, it will be the second year in a row without a traditional peak.

China's recent move to add the U.S. to a list of Zika-infected countries is worrying U.S. exporters, who fear they will be required to fumigate all containers destined for Chinese ports. The cost to fumigate a container ranges from between $100 and $200.