Bulgaria + Romania are now part of the Schengen area

Bulgaria + Romania enter the Schengen area: Bulgaria and Romania became Schengen members on Sunday, officially entering the world’s largest common area without border controls, according to a press release. Internal air and sea border checks are being lifted, but the date for lifting checks at internal land borders has not yet been determined, the statement said. The EU Commission had determined back in 2011 that the two countries met the requirements to be part of the Schengen area, and agreed to welcome them into Schengen in December 2023, according to the release.

Hong Kong’s port saw a 14% y-o-y drop to 14.3 mn TEUs in shipping cargo volumes in 2023 amid competition from mainland China and Southeast Asia, the Financial Times (FT) reported, citing data from maritime consultancy Drewry. This was the largest percentage drop among the world’s biggest ports in 2023, the newswire says. “Manufacturing moved elsewhere. Whilst [Hong Kong’s port] is still a big employer, it is no longer the gateway to southern China as there are other ports in the Greater Bay Area which service the manufacturers there,” said Tim Huxley, head of Hong Kong-based shipping investment company Mandarin Shipping.

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• UPS becomes primary air cargo provider for US post: UPS is set to become the US Postal Service’s (USPS) primary air cargo provider, as competitor FedEx announced an end to its over 20-year long partnership with USPS. (Reuters)