News / News in Brief podcast | Week 44 2025 | Hurricanes, headwinds and hints of harmony 

It’s been a week of turmoil — and tentative relief — across global trade. Hurricane Melissa brought chaos to the Caribbean, but spared Jamaica’s vital Kingston terminal, while in Asia, the fallout from Dhaka’s cargo village fire continues to snarl Bangladesh’s garment exports. Meanwhile, hopes for Red Sea stability were dashed as Israel resumed airstrikes in Gaza. 

Host and news reporter Charlotte Goldstone brings you the most important points of these stories to get you up to date with the news ahead of a new week.  

And there’s a flicker of good news: Washington and Beijing have agreed to suspend their port call fees for a year, softening trade tensions and cutting “fentanyl tariffs” by 10%. Gavin van Marle joins to unpack the toll tariffs have already taken on US port volumes and whether rate rises can last after weeks of GRI-driven recovery. 

Alex Lennane steps in to discuss the latest in air cargo, from the ‘Christmas peak’ to a new US plan to ban belly cargo from Mexico City. She then chats to Ms Goldstone about UPS’s mixed earnings,  

All that, plus a look ahead to a pivotal week as the US Supreme Court tackles tariffs and The Loadstar team hits the road for the Air Cargo Forum in Abu Dhabi.

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