Newsletters

On 1 November, a new Authorised Economic Operators (AEO) mutual recognition agreement (MRA) between the EU and the Republic of Moldova entered into force. The agreement will provide reciprocal benefits to each party’s AEOs, such as fewer customs controls and priority treatment at customs clearance.

On 31 October, the European Commission published the latest version of the Combined Nomenclature (CN), which becomes applicable as from 1 January 2023.

The latest quarterly European Road Freight Rate Benchmark produced by Transport Intelligence, IRU and Upply shows that average European road freight rates rose up again in Q3 despite lower consumer spending. However, data from the end of the quarter shows prices softening towards the end of Q3.

The Loadstar reported this week that the idled containership fleet has breached the 1 million TEU capacity milestone and is set to jump significantly higher as carriers prepare to temporarily suspend services rather than blank sailings.

On 28 October, the European Commission adopted an amendment to the State aid Temporary Crisis Framework to enable Member States to continue to use the flexibility foreseen under State aid rules to support the economy in the context of Russia's war against Ukraine.

Earlier this week, CLECAT was invited to represent the freight forwarding industry at the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) 2023 PLACI Compliance Requirements Session in Geneva. CLECAT presented freight forwarders’ preparations and concerns regarding the new EU Import Control System 2.0 (ICS2), as well as global Pre-Loading Advance Cargo Information (PLACI) programmes.

The European Logistics Platform is organising a webinar entitled “Lack of Skilled Workforce in the Logistics Sector: how to overcome shortages and attract talent?” which will take place on Wednesday 16 November from 10:00 to 11:15 CET. Topics for discussion will include attracting workforce to the profession, barriers to entry, automation, professional training requirements, as well as attracting women to the logistics profession.

On 26 October, Members of the European Parliament’s Transport and Tourism (TRAN) Committee voted on new intelligent road transport systems rules to boost digitalisation in the transport sector, to better connect different mobility apps, and to ensure wider data sharing. Intelligent transport systems (ITS) apply information and communication technologies, such as, journey planner or eCall, to make mobility safer, more efficient and comfortable.

The European Commission has approved, under EU State aid rules, a €22.5 million Dutch scheme to encourage freight transport to shift from road to inland waterways and rail. Under the scheme, which will run until the end of January 2026, the aid will take the form of non-refundable grants to shippers and logistics operators to reward them for the reduction in external costs (such as pollution, noise, congestion and accidents) achieved by using inland waterways and rail instead of road transport.