r/freightforwarding

In general, is it cheaper and easier to ship LCL / FCL to Texas or to Tennessee from China? Deciding which location is best to operate our warehouse out of. Thanks!

Hello everybody, I am looking for a freight forwarding consultant (freelance/retired,etc) with strong experience in sales and ops, preferably located in HK/China or Southeast Asia.

We are starting a freight forwarding company, looking for some good experienced guy that we can learn.

If you’re one or you know someone, please let me know how can we contact you.

Thanks!

Hoping someone could point us in the right direction.

Computer Accessories - Keyboard ,Mice , Headphones and Mousepads
Total Weight - 175 KGS
Total CBM - 0.96
FOB Shenzhen

**🛢 OIL / IRAN — still the story**

WTI closed yesterday at **$108.21** (+3.1%). Brent at **$110.69** (+2.6%). Both up **54%+** since the Iran war began on February 28.

Iran stalemate confirmed. Trump called the Iranian counteroffer **“garbage.”** Ceasefire is on “life support.”

Key context from today’s sources:

• 🌊 **Hormuz**: Some tankers have resumed movement — but flows remain far below normal and could deteriorate quickly if talks collapse.

• 🏢 **Saudi Aramco CEO**: If Hormuz stays blocked past mid-June, oil market normalization extends **into 2027.**

• 💰 **Goldman Sachs**: Global oil stocks at 101 days of demand — falling to 98 by end of May. Product scarcity risks rising in South Africa, India, Thailand, and Taiwan.

• 💸 **IEA**: Cumulative supply losses from Hormuz already exceed **1 billion barrels.** 14 mb/d shut in — unprecedented.

• 💵 **$45 billion** extra spent by Americans on fuel since the war began.

⚠️ Do NOT revise FSC rates downward. Oil risk remains skewed to the upside.

**⛈ WEATHER — updated**

• 🌩️ **Southern Plains / Arklatex**: Widely scattered severe storms today through tomorrow. Damaging winds + large hail primary threats. I-35 TX-OK, I-40 OK, I-30 TX-AR.

• ⚡ **Mid Mississippi Valley / Lower Great Lakes**: Scattered severe storms this afternoon. Wind damage + hail. I-55 MO-TN, I-65 KY-IN.

• 🌧️ **Texas Hill Country**: Heavy rain risk Wednesday. I-10 TX, I-35 TX Austin.

• 🌡️ **East Coast heatwave**: Ends Wednesday. Below-normal temps spread across Southern Plains and Midwest Thursday–Friday. Reefer demand easing — small window for better rates end of week.

• 🚧 **Iowa/Kansas/Missouri**: Post-EF3+ outbreak road assessment ongoing. Check 511ia.gov and 511ks.org before dispatch.

**🚂 AAR RAIL**

AAR released the week ending May 16 data today at noon ET — first numbers covering the CVSA Roadcheck week and the start of the Kansas/Nebraska storm outbreak. Data not yet appeared on Railpace or AJOT as of this post. Will include in tomorrow’s morning update.

Last confirmed (wk May 9): 513,755 carloads + intermodal, +3.7% YoY.

**⛽ DIESEL / RATES — unchanged**

• EIA wk May 18: **$5.596/gal** (-4.3¢) · FSC baseline this week

• Van: $2.56/mi · Reefer: $2.83/mi · Flatbed: $3.14/mi (DAT/FTR wk May 18)

• USD/CAD: 1.3769 (May 19 close)

• Next EIA: May 27

That’s it for today.

⏰ **Next update: tomorrow morning, May 21, before 7 AM ET** — will include AAR rail wk May 16 data, fresh WTI/Brent, NWS Day 1 outlook, and any overnight Iran developments.

All of this tracked daily at **pulse.ambry.io** — free, no account needed.

Sources: CNBC May 19-20, IEA May OMR 2026, Goldman Sachs via CNBC, OilPrice.com, NWS WPC May 20 4:00 AM EDT, SevereWeatherOutlook May 20, EIA.gov May 19, DAT/FTR via FleetOwner, AAR / Railpace, TradingEconomics

DDP to Delhi , FOB package.
Total Weight - 190 KGS
Total CBM - 0.752

not looking for theory actual stuff you've seen in the field.

i'll start: client insisted on FOB Shanghai for a full container. carrier loaded the box, it sat on the terminal for 11 days waiting for a vessel. damage happened on the terminal. client assumed it was covered. it wasn't risk had already transferred when the goods passed the ship's rail. except with containers that's not how it works anymore, FOB doesn't cover terminal handling. FCA to the carrier's premises would've fixed it. nobody caught it.

seen it happen more than once with DDP too supplier quotes DDP from China, doesn't have an IOR entity at destination, shipment gets held at customs, nobody can legally clear it. "DDP" on the invoice means nothing if the seller can't actually act as importer of record.

curious what you've run into FOB abuse, EXW where the buyer had zero idea what they signed up for, CIF with no real insurance behind it, whatever. what's the one you keep seeing come back?

Hi I am looking for a TMS ideally with invoicing included, that can be used in Europe + Dubai.
We are a freight forwarding company based in Europe. Obviously I am able to use Google, but I woud like some honest opinions., and there are simply too many options for me to choose from.
(also I got this task at work and I have zero clue about logistics, but would like to gather some opinion of yours and information)
Thanks everyone!

We are a small FF company located in the Middle East and have recently started growing and getting more and ore RFQs. Wanted leads on a nice TMS and also wated to see if anyone else facing the same problem of increased demand and lack of proper tracking.

Any leads would be appreciated.

Will this size (290 x 114 x 103 cm) fit into a container?

Me and my friend are trying to open a small scale niche e commerce store where we import specific electronic items from china and sell it in india, our first batch will be small (around 70k Rs.) Looking for agents who can help us navigate customs and potentially save us the trouble of paying high amounts as novices. Any help is accepted not only agents but advice in genral will also be appriciated! ( u guys can tell me about frieght forwarders etc.. and how to contact them!)

I'm new to freight forwarding. What useful tools would you recommend to help me improve efficiency?

so we are looking for an agent who handles shipment from Japan, and have IATA, who can handle the mailing procedure in English, and can share quick rates without the typical Japanese mailing respect and long unnecessary details in the mail.

How do you verify that carrier quotes don't have hidden charges that eat your margin?

I've spent 10 years as a freight forwarder, and I keep seeing the same pattern:

1. Carrier sends a PDF quote with 8-10 line items

2. Sales rep copies "Total" into client quote

3. Three weeks later, a $400 DTHC or emission surcharge appears that wasn't in the original quote

4. Client refuses to pay, forwarder eats the cost

Last year alone, I caught $12K in "surprise" charges that would've killed my margins on CIF and DDP shipments. But I caught them by manually checking every PDF line-by-line against the incoterm rules.

My question for the community:

- Do you have a systematic way to verify what's actually INCLUDED vs EXCLUDED in your carrier quotes before you send client quotes?

- Or is it still Excel + eyeball + hope?

- Has anyone built/bought a tool for this, or is everyone just eating the occasional surprise charge?

Not selling anything — genuinely trying to understand if this is a "me problem" or an "industry problem" before I spend time building a solution.

Specifically curious about:

1. DDP quotes — how do you verify duty rates and delivery costs before quoting?

2. USA/Canada CIF — Do you assume DTHC is included or excluded? Carrier billing practices seem inconsistent.

3. Mixed currencies (USD ocean freight + EUR surcharges) — do you convert manually or use a tool?

Doing my first, out of two, workplace practices in my freight forwarding studies in Sweden, and loving it so far. What I don't love however, is Hapag-Lloyd, and I wanted to hear if they are this bad compared to other carriers across the world.

It's mainly when I have to make amendments to their booking confirmations problems arrive. They never seem to understand what it is that I want to change and ask in almost every mail "What is it that you want to change?". For example, last couple of weeks they have given me empty pick-ups from a container yard that just does not work for us as we first have to drive it by rail to the client for stuffing, and only a specific terminal has a railway system connected.

Or when I needed to change a booking two days ago, because they had booked a route where the main leg arrived one day after the third and final one departed. I asked them to change that, but they didn't understand my amendment through the site that basically said:

"Hi!

Please change the routing so that the second leg does not arrive after the third one departs.". Thought I was super clear. So did my mentor.

I don't have this issue with the other carriers we use, CMA, MSC, Maersk, ONE and OOCL. They understand perfectly, but Hapag gives us a constant headache and has kind of a bad rep in our office.

Is it the same globally?

Hey guys,

I just wanted to know does anybody do any Air charters to and from Africa. If so please reach out to me urgently

Hi all. I work for a GSSA/CSA representing a number of airlines. We work with hundreds of FFs who do business with our airlines. What are some of your biggest (or smallest) gripes when dealing with Airlines and CSAs? This is your chance to have your pet peeves heard!