A message on the UPS website, which reads “temporary service delays of up to one additional business day in transit time are to be expected for shipments from eastern and southern China mainland to the US and Americas until further notice”, sums up ongoing port delays throughout the region.These ref lect the status of the global system, with Linerlytica reporting that global port congestion was at a two-year high at the beginning of September.“Berthing delays remain acute at the main Chinese ports, with Shanghai, Ningbo, Yantian and Qingdao experiencing delays of up to two days due to high vessel traffic and bunching of arrivals. “Although the congestion at Southeast Asian hubs has improved, ships arriving at Singapore, Port Klang and Tanjung Pelepas are still experiencing delays of one to two days,” it says.In June, it was reported that nearly 50% of all Asia-Europe westbound sailings had not departed on schedule due to congestion in Asian ports. According to Maersk, Asian exports are more impacted than imports by the ongoing situation in the Red Sea. This is primarily because Asian countries are major global exporters, and China is the largest exporter to many Asian countries. Routes between the Far East and Europe via the Suez Canal have been directly impacted, affecting most trade routes. The disruptions have extended beyond Far East-Europe routes to the entire ocean network.Reasons for the ongoing delays include congestion in the main Asian hubs, and the rerouting of vessels away from some regions to increase capacity on priority routes.Ports in China have also been hit by adverse weather conditions. One of the knock-on effects is congestion in west Mediterranean ports.Ultra-large ships from the Far East are off loading containers at ports like Barcelona for transhipment to their final destinations.The traditional Christmas rush has also started early.“Shippers assessed the impact of the Red Sea conf lict on ocean supply chains and are not prepared to take the risk of repeating the chaos of the pandemic years – meaning we have seen record-breaking volumes on major fronthaul trades out of China ahead of the traditional peak season in Q3,” commented Peter Sand, Xeneta chief analyst.Maersk warns that the oncoming typhoon season could create further risk of congestion. It describes the trade between the Far East and Africa as “dynamic, with strong demand but limited capacity despite additional space added on to Far East to East Africa routes in June”. ER
