Kevin Palmstein is the marketing manager at Zepol Corp. and blogs at http://www.zepol.com/blog about importing and trade data related issues. Zepol Corp. provides trade data tools for analyzing the international marketplace including U.S. Customs trade data and U.S. Census trade statistics. Visit www.zepol.com for more information. Watch for further trade data and analysis from Zepol Corp. in future issues of The National Provisioner and online at ProvisionerOnline.com.
The import and export industry had a tough 2009 with total shipments being down more than 12 percent from 2008 and far below that when compared to 2007. The carrier industry struggled mightily as the economic downturn was compounded by a slew of new vessels coming on line as shipping volumes tanked around the world.