Industrial Action

DP World Australia has received Protected Industrial Action notices from the CFMMEU for each of their Australian terminals this week.

Terminal operations at each location will cease for a period of 48 hours in Brisbane, Sydney and Fremantle and 96 hours in Melbourne.  

Monday 8 July 2019
Brisbane: All terminal operations will be stopped from 6am for a 48hour period.

Wednesday 10 July 2019
Melbourne:  All terminal operations will be stopped from 6am for 96 hour period.

Thursday 11 July 2019
Fremantle: All terminal operations will be stopped from 6am for a 48hour period
Sydney: All terminal operations will be stopped from 6am for a 48 hour period.

For further information, please see the below media release.
http://www.mua.org.au/national_waterfront_stoppages_as_dp_world_attacks_wharfies_conditions

Seasonal measures for the Brown Marmorated Stink bug (BMSB)

In response to the rapid expansion of BMSB throughout Europe and North America, the department have strengthened the seasonal measures to manage the risk of BMSB from arriving in Australia.

As previous seasons, the next BMSB season will apply to certain goods manufactured in, or shipped from target risk countries and/or vessels that berth at, load or tranship from target risk countries. The next season will however see an additional month added, running from 1^st September 2019 until the 31^st May 2020 (inclusive).

To prepare for the next season, we suggest to make yourself familiar with the below website link, issued by the department. 

http://www.agriculture.gov.au/import/before/brown-marmorated-stink-bugs

We will continue to update our clients as further information comes to hand. If you require any further information at present, please contact your ICAL representative.

Biosecurity Levy – September 1st 2019

The Biosecurity Levy will be introduced on September 1st and will contribute to onshore surveillance, diagnostic, date analytics, research and adoption of new technology. This will help to detect, identify and respond to exotic pests and diseases earlier. It will ensure we can move people and goods into Australia safely and more efficiently.

The Levy will be:
-Imposed on all containerized cargo imported to Australia by sea, except for military equipment.
-Imposed on Stevedores.
-Set at $10.02 per incoming twenty-foot equivalent sea container and $1 per tonne for non-containerized cargo.
-One percent of the current cost importing a container to Australia.

Just over a year after US President Donald Trump withdrew from the TPP, the remaining countries have signed the agreement in Chile, with hope to ratify it by 2019.

Whilst there has been criticism on the overlap between Australia’s existing free trade agreements, we currently have agreements in place with eight of the 10 other TPP members, it will have a big impact on Australian importers and exporters, some advantages include:

• Opening up of the Canadian and Mexican markets
• Easier certification requirements, it will be easier to qualify for lower duty rates under the TPP than under Australia’s existing free trade agreements.
• New Countries are able to join, the more countries that join, the more likely the TPP could become the default free trade agreement.
• One of the biggest benefits appears to be for farmers, the elimination on dairy products into Japan will be a highlight as in the past, the US has been a real cost competitor.

The TPP may also weaken the advantage Australia had over other countries, for example, not all TPP members had existing agreements with Japan. The entry of the TPP will mean Australia will again be on level pegging with other TPP members.

We will continue to monitor the progress of the agreement and once further information is available, we will be able to review  and recommend options for our clients importing or exporting to/from a TPP member country.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement is a free trade agreement (FTA) seeking to establish new trade and investment opportunities for 11 countries on the Pacific Rim: Australia, Japan, Canada, Mexico, New Zealand, Singapore, Peru, Chile, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei.

The TPP will reduce customs tariffs on a range of goods and will offer comprehensive trade provisions concerning trade in services, investment and the environment.

The TTP was ratified and is now in force effective from 30 December 2018, in accordance with the Customs Act 1901 and the CPTPP Rules of origin.

The rules are contained in the following link, listing the full required details in order to claim duty free status.

https://www.abf.gov.au/free-trade-agreements/files/tpp-11-importers-guide.pdf

If you import or export to any of the parties included in the TPP agreement and want to know more about how this agreement may benefit you, please contact your ICAL representative.

Febuary 4th – 10th 2019 

We would like to inform our clients of the upcoming Chinese New Year Holiday from Feb 4th-10th. Based on the Lunar Calendar, 2019 represents the year of the Pig, symbolizing productivity and wealth. Whilst the holiday officially begins Feb 4th, we expect operations will be winding down earlier as people begin to head home for the week-long holiday.

If you have plans to move any cargo before the holiday, please let us know this week so we can start the booking process.

As advised in our November newsletter, DP world have notified the industry of their new fee structure beginning January 1 2019. Along with an increase of $12 to the timeslot booking fee, there has been another significant increase to their infrastructure charge effective on all container movements within the port.

Beginning January 1, the wharf infrastructure fee will increase to $104.50 per container + GST for all import and export container movements. Please note the above increases will be introduced for all containers arriving / departing after Jan 1 2019

If you have any questions or would like to discuss further, please feel free to contact us

Wishing you a festive holiday season!

The team at ICAL would like to wish you and your family a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

We appreciate your support in 2018 and look forward to continuing to do business together in 2019.

If you require assistance with storing your cargo over the Holiday period, please contact your ICAL representative to see how we can assist you.

Kindly note, our office will be closed December 25th & 26th and will re open on Thursday 27th. We will be closed again on January 1st and will reopen January 2nd.

Happy Holidays!

We have been advised that there is a planned stop work meeting in Melbourne on Tuesday 23rd of October between 9.30am and 2pm.

The below has been issued by DP World Australia;

“Please be advised that there will be an approved stop work meeting in Melbourne on Tuesday 23 October 2018 from 9.30 am – 2.00 pm. All terminal operations will be stopped during this time.”

Please contact your ICAL representative if you require further information.