Field notes from the dock.
Stories from dispatchers, dock supervisors, and planners using CargoDuo every day. Plain language. New posts most weeks.
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13 articlesFreight Market Update, September 2026: Suez Returns Service by Service as Q4 Nears
Carriers are returning to Suez service by service, Drewry's Asia–Europe lanes eased while its transpacific lanes rose in the four weeks to 10 September, and East–West blank sailings bunch around China's holidays. Our September 2026 overview covers routing, capacity and the deadlines before year end, with links to the Europe, Gulf and Türkiye updates.
Europe Port Congestion, September 2026: Full Yards, a Low Rhine and EU Rules Already Live
Rotterdam and Bremerhaven yards were close to full in early September, the German port pay round is still open and the Rhine at Kaub read 28 cm on 15 September. PPWR already applies, product identifiers for low-value parcels are due on 1 November and EUDR starts on 30 December. Our September 2026 Europe update covers ports, inland legs and EU rules, with dated actions.
Red Sea and Hormuz Shipping Update, September 2026: Routing Cargo to Jeddah and the Gulf
With container shipping through Hormuz effectively closed, Saudi imports come in through Jeddah, where ships berth quickly and boxes wait on land. Our September 2026 update covers Maersk's Gulf booking rules and surcharges, port conditions from Jeddah to Khor Fakkan, Saudi customs and truck limits, and a reefer plan that ships two more pallets.
Shipping from Türkiye, September 2026: Gulf Surcharges, Border Queues and EU Rules Before Q4
Türkiye had its best August for exports on record, and the routes carrying them are under strain: new Maersk surcharges on the Gulf lanes, queues and a drivers' protest at the Bulgarian border, long waits at Mersin and a rail closure behind Trieste. Our September 2026 update covers trade by market, routes, the EU rules for Turkish-made goods and a real axle-load example.
CargoDuo 1.3: two ways to load the same truck
CargoDuo 1.3 shows you a second loading plan next to your own, keeps packing running after you close the tab, loads the items that did not fit, and fits more cargo into each vehicle so more loads go out on fewer trucks.
China Golden Week 2026 Costs Four Working Days, Not Ten
Every Golden Week advisory in your inbox this month is describing 2025. In 2026 the Mid-Autumn Festival does not sit inside the National Day break — it falls on its own Friday the week before and costs Chinese industry exactly one working day. The whole complex costs four. The danger has moved somewhere else entirely.
How Many Pallets Fit in a 13.6 m Trailer? 34, 33 or 26
The floor of a 13.6 m curtainsider takes 34 Euro pallets — 33 if you want tolerance on your side, 26 if they are industrial. None of those numbers is the answer to how many you can actually load: payload runs out first, and the drive axle runs out before payload.
Ocean Freight Rates Near Their Peak: Drewry's Index Hits $4,339 as Shanghai-New York Reaches $8,706
Drewry's composite index closed 13 August at $4,339 per FEU, up about 74% year on year. Transpacific lanes climbed while Asia-Europe fell, Hormuz transits are still 70% below pre-war levels, and 49 sailings have been cancelled through mid-September. Here is the market as it stands, and what the 2027 orderbook says next.
Shipping Container Dimensions: Only the Outside Is Standard
A 40ft container's exterior is fixed to the millimetre. Its interior is not — ISO sets only a floor, and for weight there are three separate ceilings at once. Internal and external dimensions, door openings, tare and payload for every container type, and which figure is actually binding.
Türkiye Rewrote Its Truck Overload Fines — and Made the Shipper Pay Too
On 27 February 2026, Türkiye's Law No. 7574 raised truck overload fines to a tiered 10,000–60,000 TL, made the consignor separately liable for the first time, and barred foreign-plated vehicles from leaving the country until fines are paid. Here is the new table, the axle math behind the quietest fine on it, and how a Türkiye–Iraq carrier closes the risk at the loading dock.
How Many Pallets Fit in a 40ft Container? 25 Euro, 21 GMA — and the Floor Plan That Gets You There
A 20ft container takes 11 Euro pallets and a 40ft takes 25 — but only when some of the pallets are turned. Capacity tables by pallet standard, the pinwheel floor-plan math, the weight limit that caps double-stacking, and a real Shanghai–Rotterdam scenario.
CBM Calculation: Measuring One Cubic Meter Wrong Costs $4,300 per Shipment
What is CBM and how do you calculate it? Formulas for sea, air, and road freight, volumetric weight rules, and real container capacity tables — with worked export examples.
How we saved a truck a day on our Hamburg lane
The honest version of the story — six months in. What worked, what didn't, and what we'd tell another team thinking about it.