From the desk of Capt. Jeff Monroe, MM, AMPE International Association of Maritime and Port Executives CARGO PREDICTIONS POSITIVE FOR 2018 Industry experts are expecting to see container handling increases in 2018. Imports at major container ports in the U.S. alone are expected to grow 4.9 percent during the first half of 2018 compared with the same period a year earlier. Retail sales are expected to grow between 3.8 and 4.4 percent over 2017’s $3.53 trillion. Ports reviewed handled 1.72 million TEUs in December, the latest month for which after-the-fact numbers are available. With most holiday merchandise already in the country by then, the number was down 2.1 percent from November but up

From the desk of Capt. Jeff Monroe, MM, AMPE International Association of Maritime and Port Executives SHIPPER’S DAY AT IRPT’S 2018 ANNUAL CONFERENCE The Inland Rivers Port and Terminal Association (IRPT) will host a Shipper’s Day on Thursday, April 26 from 7:30 am to noon at the IRPT Annual Conference. One of the main priorities has been to bring more commodities to the river system. One way to do this is to educate potential shippers on the benefits of river transportation, ease of access and such. The IRPT would like to invite smaller shippers to take a look at river transportation, including the raw materials used in production as well as multiple shippers of the same raw materials tha

From the desk of Capt. Jeff Monroe, MM, AMPE International Association of Maritime and Port Executives REGULATORY CHANGES AMMONIA SOLUTION. Ireland and the UK have established a multilateral special agreement under ADR, M310, which deals with the transport of ammonia solution (UN2672) in rigid and composite IBCs. M310 replaces M256, which expired last week. The new agreement will run until 2022. CANADIAN HAZMAT TRANSPORT: Transport Canada has released for consultation the final draft of the revised edition of standard TP 14850 on small containers for transportation of dangerous goods of classes 3, 4, 5, 6.1, 8 and 9. This is the final chance for interested persons to have their say before it