Geopolitics keeps shaping flows this week, with freight rates running up for a third straight week and CMA CGM defending its Q1 footing. AI keeps eating procurement, and the IMO finally lands a code for autonomous ships. A quiet but telling shift: rail is winning back containers in the eastern U.S.
Operations & 3PL
Hellmann and MAS Holdings break ground on Sri Lanka fashion hub. Joint venture Hellmann MAS Supply Chain (HMSC) will develop an 8,000+ sqm built-to-suit fashion logistics hub in Kimbulapitiya, next door to Bandaranaike International Airport. Climate- and humidity-controlled zones, solar panels, and apparel flows routed across Asia, Africa and Europe. The site anchors Hellmann’s Forward2030 plan and reinforces MAS Holdings’ apparel ambitions. Source: Container News
Gainesville Inland Port plugs Georgia manufacturers into Savannah. Georgia Ports Authority’s USD 134 million inland terminal, built with Norfolk Southern, opened on May 4 and is now running a daily rail shuttle to the Port of Savannah. GPA expects to shift 26,000 containers to rail in year one, with full build-out at 200,000. The target is the 600-mile roundtrip truck route into Atlanta and back. Source: Container News
East Coast intermodal back in growth mode. Higher diesel, restored service reliability and the end of the four-year trucking recession are pushing freight back onto rail in the eastern U.S., according to JOC. Short-haul lanes are leading the rebound, narrowing the cost gap with over-the-road. Source: JOC
CMA CGM holds the line in Q1 2026. The Marseille-based carrier posted resilient first-quarter results. Chairman and CEO Rodolphe Saadé cited the strength of shipping activities and continued diversification, against a backdrop of heightened geopolitical tensions and a volatile spot market. Source: Hellenic Shipping
Technology & Automation
AD Ports and e& wire up a 1,000 km AI-ready backbone. AD Ports Group and Emirati operator e& have rolled out a new terrestrial digital network stretching more than 1,000 kilometres across Abu Dhabi port, logistics and industrial assets. Ultra-low latency, designed to carry real-time IoT, video and sensor data, with machine learning and predictive automation as the stated endgame. Group CEO Captain Mohamed Juma Al Shamisi framed it as the foundation of an “intelligent and predictive” trade infrastructure. Source: Container News
Coupa snaps up Tonkean for agentic workflows. Less than two weeks after acquiring Rossum, Coupa announced its second AI deal of the month: Palo Alto workflow automation platform Tonkean. The startup brings a no-code orchestration layer with 250+ connectors plus multi-agent coordination. Coupa is bolting it onto its “agentic trade network” for procurement and supplier processes. Terms undisclosed. Source: American Shipper
GAF uses AI to compress network design cycles. Marianna Vydrevich, supply chain network design and optimization lead at North American roofing manufacturer GAF, told FreightWaves at Coupa Inspire 2026 that AI is rewriting scenario planning. The biggest wins so far sit on the data engineering side, freeing analytics teams from IT dependencies. GAF runs 30+ plants across the continent. Source: American Shipper
Taiwan’s Panjit pivots toward AI and robotics. After four decades in discrete power semiconductors, Panjit International is rewiring its product mix toward AI compute and automotive electronics. Management calls it a new growth phase as power semi pricing flattens. Source: DIGITIMES
Sustainability & Energy
IMO adopts first global Code for autonomous ships. The Maritime Safety Committee approved the International Code of Safety for Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships (MASS Code) at its 111th session in London. The framework sets the rules for safe integration of remotely operated and autonomous commercial vessels into global shipping. Source: Hellenic Shipping
Sustainable shipping: action over optics. A gCaptain analysis pushes back on the polished decarb narratives now standard in maritime corporate reporting. To hit IMO emissions targets, the sector will need data transparency and measurable cuts, not curated press releases. Source: gCaptain
Arctic black carbon outpaces regulation. Paul Morgan argues in gCaptain that black carbon emissions from Arctic shipping are climbing faster than the IMO can respond. The pollutant’s outsized warming effect on snow and ice makes the regulatory gap an urgent one. Source: gCaptain
International Markets
Drewry WCI climbs 6%. The composite Drewry World Container Index jumped 6% to USD 2,712 per 40ft on the week ending May 21, marking a third straight weekly rise. Asia–Europe rates drove most of the move. Source: Hellenic Shipping
Phillips Connect names Wallin as president and GM. Smart trailer specialist Phillips Connect promoted Mark Wallin to president and general manager. Wallin, architect of the product roadmap, will steer the platform deeper into connected and autonomous freight. The Irvine, California-based vendor already counts several of North America’s top 10 trucking fleets among its customers. Source: American Shipper
Singapore tycoon indicted in container cartel case. Singapore shipping veteran Teo Siong Seng was charged by U.S. prosecutors with colluding to inflate dry container prices, in one of the most prominent global container price cartel investigations to date. Source: gCaptain
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