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OceanX: Liner profits surge; EU trucking and national security; clock ticking on booking platforms

Welcome to Q4 and the wonderful month of October. If you are on the carrier side that certainly is the case, for example Hapag Lloyd just raised its earnings outlook - a little bump that tells you that this industry is truly no longer about strategy and execution, but merely about luck. So those "geopolitical challenges" and that "high degree of uncertainty" is likely to pay off again. Employees at these highly profitable liners seem less happy though, take those on strike ...

Another Ceva reboot, another 10,000 staff. Can it deliver?

Ceva Logistics has had a long history of re-writes. From its birth under Apollo - an era tarnished by a restructuring that left employee shareholders' investments worthless - to life as a public company, and now as a mere arm of the opaque CMA CGM group, the 3PL has seen many new beginnings, some more successful than others. Yesterday, it announced another new version of itself - offering a simpler structure, stronger accountability, and a renewed focus on customers. Again. Just two years ago, for example, in July 2024, as it began "the process of welcoming Bolloré Logistics", a reorganisation promised improved customer satisfaction, operational excellence, and faster responses to customer challenges. Now new chief executive Patrick Moebel is, again, promising faster decisions, clearer accountability, and an organisation better equipped to serve customers. The question is, what will make this version work? Following the acquisition of Bolloré Logistics, Ceva adopted a vertical, product-driven organisational approach, with teams aligned down to local level. The intention was to make its expanding capabilities easier for customers to access and deploy. Then-CEO Mathieu Friedberg said the vision for Ceva was "taking its final form" - but perhaps it was not so final after all. Mr Moebel, who took over on 1 July, spent his first months listening to employees, customers, and business partners. According to Ceva's latest announcement, the consistent message was that the company could move faster, simplify decision-making, and strengthen accountability. The inference, of course, being that the previous structure left considerable room for improvement. Ceva will now organise its activities around two global business units, Freight Management and Contract Logistics, headed by Henri Le Gouis and Chris Walton, respectively, as it continues to integrate acquisitions. But Ceva has been here before. In July 2024, The Loadstar reported an insider's account of competing leadership teams, separate systems and offices, and internal uncertainty during the Bolloré integration. The source said the upheaval was affecting customers. A smaller rival saw opportunities in the larger forwarder's preoccupation with its own internal affairs. As a source said at the time: "As we are forced to merge, everyone is trying to protect their jobs and teams, hence the politics and poor culture and environment. "We all know huge cuts are coming, so it's very uneasy times and it's impacting our staff and customers." Yet since them, the integration task has grown substantially. CMA CGM completed its $1.4bn acquisition of FedEx Supply Chain on 1 October, adding nearly 10,000 employees and approximately 350,000 sq metres of warehouse space. The transaction nearly triples Ceva's North American contract logistics footprint. That is another substantial business to incorporate, while Ceva says it will also focus on completing the integration of its previous acquisitions. Mr Moebel's experience running FedEx Logistics should help. He arrived with knowledge of the business being absorbed, its capabilities, and its people. But that will not diminish the practical work of connecting systems, defining responsibilities, managing scale and staff, and ensuring customers can obtain consistent service across the larger organisation. Buying a network is one achievement; making it function as one is another. Customers have already seen how operational disruption can turn their logistics provider's problems into their own. After an August cyber-attack, for example, ecommerce retailer Bol took products held at Ceva's Veerweg facility offline, and stopped receiving goods there. On 13 August, it still could not give sellers a reopening date; sales began restarting in stages on 20 August. Yes, cyber-attacks are notoriously difficult for companies, but adding integration - all while CMA CGM needs to extract strong returns from its investment - looks like it could be another bumpy ride. Ceva has acquired the scale, capabilities, and geographical reach. Mr Moebel's task is to make those acquisitions deliver together - and to show customers why this reorganisation will produce something they were already promised as recently as 2024.

Menzies takes on a changing cargo landscape

Cargo volumes across Menzies Aviation's global network have continued to grow during 2026, although the performance of individual regions, facilities and trade lanes has varied amid geopolitical disruption, changing trade policies and rising costs. The firm's executive vice president of cargo, Beau Paine, says that during its most recent quarter, aircraft turns were up 8% year on year to 1.2m cargo volumes increased 7% to 620,000 tonnes. "Cargo volumes across our network have been positive overall during 2026, although performance has varied by region, facility and trade lane," says Paine. Demand has been particularly strong in markets benefiting from growing e-commerce, express, pharmaceutical and other time-critical traffic. However, Paine says the growth has not been uniform. "Trade-policy changes, geopolitical disruption and constrained airspace have altered established cargo flows, while higher fuel costs and tariff uncertainty continue to affect capacity and customer decision-making," he says. The company's scale and diversified cargo portfolio have helped it respond to changes in demand, Paine points out. Menzies handles more than 2.4m tonnes annually across a network that includes 73 warehouses and 79 freighter-handling locations, covering general cargo as well as pharmaceuticals, perishables, e-commerce and specialist shipments, he says. Menzies has also seen some moderation in China-to-Europe e-commerce traffic following the European Union's introduction of a €3 charge for low-value imports. Paine says this should not be interpreted as a decline in underlying e-commerce demand. "The operational impact is more significant: the change increases the importance of accurate product-level information, tariff classification, duty processing, pre-arrival data validation and customs readiness," he says. Internal analysis prepared by Menzies found that China and Hong Kong to Europe tonnage fell by around 9% month on month in July, with Hong Kong down around 19%. For cargo handlers, the shift towards e-commerce is also changing the nature of the operation, with companies increasingly processing large numbers of individual parcels rather than smaller numbers of consolidated shipments. "E-commerce means cargo handlers are increasingly processing millions of individual parcels rather than a smaller number of consolidated shipments," says Paine. "That requires parcel-level data, rapid customs processing, digital scanning, automated sorting and effective exception management, without compromising safety or security." Investment opportunities Oceania has emerged as a particular area of opportunity for Menzies, with the company investing in additional capacity at key gateways. At Western Sydney International Airport, Menzies has begun operations from a new 12,500 sq m facility capable of handling up to 200,000 tonnes annually. The ability to operate around the clock, combined with the facility's proximity to Western Sydney's expanding manufacturing, distribution and logistics base, positions it to handle e-commerce, express, pharmaceutical, temperature-controlled and oversized cargo, Paine says. Menzies has also opened Auckland Airport's first dedicated airside cargo terminal. The 32,000 sq m development doubles the company's operational footprint in New Zealand and serves 18 airline cargo partners. "Demand at these locations is being supported by a combination of regional trade growth, expanding e-commerce and express flows, increased requirements for specialist handling and customers' need for facilities that provide capacity, visibility and resilience," says Paine. Sydney is another example of investment being driven by demand. The company opened its M1 facility in 2025 to support growing volumes of temperature-sensitive and e-commerce cargo, taking its Sydney operation to three facilities with a combined footprint of more than 20,000 sq m and capacity of up to 250,000 tonnes annually. The company has been making other investments too, with a focus on increasing capacity, improving cargo visibility and using technology to simplify customers' operations. Alongside the new facilities in Western Sydney and Auckland, the company is continuing to expand its MACH global cargo management platform. MACH is now deployed across 50 airports, has processed more than 1.6m air waybills and manages approximately 55% of Menzies' network cargo tonnage. The platform provides standardised workflows, shipment visibility and greater consistency in operational control across the cargo journey. In August, Menzies added Quick Pay to the MACH customer portal in partnership with PayCargo. The service allows customers to view charges associated with an air waybill and complete payment digitally, reducing manual processes and helping to accelerate cargo release. The company is also piloting AI-powered measurement and build-up technology at London Heathrow Airport. The system automatically captures information such as pallet dimensions, weight, stackability and shipment references as cargo moves through the warehouse. Paine says the aim is to improve data quality, efficiency and decision-making from cargo acceptance through to aircraft loading. Volatility remains the key challenge Paine identifies volatility as the biggest challenge facing cargo handlers in 2026. "Geopolitical tensions, airspace restrictions, changing customs regimes, tariffs and higher fuel prices can quickly alter capacity, routing and demand," he says. In July, jet fuel prices were 56.9% higher than a year earlier, while some Middle East-linked trade lanes contracted sharply despite overall growth in global cargo demand. At the same time, handlers face sustained pressure to invest in technology while maintaining resilient frontline operations. Customers increasingly expect real-time visibility, faster truck turnaround, accurate data and predictable cargo release. Menzies sees MACH, MILE, truck-management technology, AI-powered measurement and digital payments as key components of its response. Paine also sees significant opportunities for cargo handlers as global trade continues to expand. "Global demand continues to grow, with e-commerce, pharmaceuticals, specialist cargo and time-critical supply chains creating demand for handlers that can combine global scale with local execution," he says. Secondary airports and new 24-hour cargo gateways could provide additional opportunities to add capacity, improve resilience and connect cargo more efficiently with manufacturing and fulfilment centres. For Paine, the role of the cargo handler is therefore evolving beyond the traditional warehouse operation. "The companies best placed to succeed will be those that move beyond conventional warehouse handling and provide an integrated cargo ecosystem, combining physical infrastructure, forwarding, customs, digital visibility and data-driven operations," he says. "That is where Menzies' global network, MACH platform, MILE proposition and investment in new facilities give us a strong basis for future growth."