<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=2VkSi9_0vuXedpg00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=2VkSi9_0vuXedpg00" width="1920" height="1080" ><figcaption>Illustration: Lindsey Bailey/Axios</figcaption></figure>America dodged a sledgehammer on Thursday night, when striking stevedores reached a <a href="https://www.axios.com/2024/10/03/port-strike-union-deal-wages-contract-extension">tentative agreement</a> to return to work.The big picture: It sounds like the White House successfully cajoled the employers into boosting their wage offer, up to a reported 62% raise over six years, but the two sides couldn't come to terms on the future of port automation and semi-automation.<ul><li>Negotiations will continue while workers are on the dock, with the master agreement extended until Jan. 15, 2025 (when it could become the next president's problem).</li></ul>Behind the scenes: Private equity wasn't directly at the table, but it was represented.<ul><li>Most U.S. ports are controlled by quasi-public entities, like port authorities, while the actual cargo terminals are usually owned by private companies.</li><li>The largest and oldest of those in the U.S. is Carrix, the parent company of SSA Marine, which is controlled by Blackstone.</li><li>Another major marine terminal owner and operator is Maher, which is owned by Australian investment firm Macquarie.</li></ul>Why it matters: Private equity's involvement means that the union doesn't really know how much money many of the employers make, despite claiming to know.<ul><li>Carrix, for example, hasn't reported its financials since Blackstone's buyout in 2021.</li><li>Moreover, many of the other relevant marine companies are closely held European groups that also keep their revenue and profit data secret.</li></ul>Zoom in: Nonetheless, union boss Harold Daggett has insisted that the marine companies are "greedy bastards" that earn "hundreds of billions of dollars."<ul><li>For example, Daggett <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=822WNvhQHKI">recently claimed</a> that Italian cargo shipper MSC "made three times the money of Amazon." But that was cherry-picked data based on <a href="https://splash247.com/mscs-financial-results-leaked/">leaked</a> MSC financials for the one year in nearly a decade that Amazon recorded a net loss. In general, Amazon's top and bottom lines are much higher.</li></ul><ul><li>Then again, Daggett also said in that interview that "Companies that work in the maritime business come from overseas — not only of them belong to America." That would come as a surprise to Seattle-based Carrix.</li><li>A spokesman for the International Longshoreman's Association didn't respond to an interview request about employer profits.</li></ul>The bottom line: Private equity has permeated all parts of America's economy, including its ports. That makes it much more complicated to suss out who's in the right when vital work comes to a halt.</div></body>

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Private equity's role in America's ports

America dodged a sledgehammer on Thursday night, when striking stevedores reached a tentative agreement to return to work. The big picture: It sounds like the White House successfully cajoled the employers into boosting their wage offer, up to a reported 62% raise over six years, but the two sides couldn't come to terms on the future of port automation and semi-automation.

Private equity's role in America's ports

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