The congestion at Yantian Port has extended to surrounding ports, and due to the cancellation of a large number of ships docking at the severely congested Yantian Port, it has brought serious burdens to the surrounding ports - delays at Nansha Port and Shekou Port continue to increase.

Affected by the congestion at Yantian Port, the number of blank flights in the first half of June increased by 300%, and container freight continued to soar to unprecedented levels.

Analysts from Project44 stated that from June 1st to 15th, 298 container shipping services worldwide were suspended, with a total capacity of over 3 million TEUs. This means that the number of suspended services within a month has increased by 300%. Although not all air freight is caused by Yantian International Container Terminal, its impact is evident.

Josh Brazil, Vice President of Marketing at Project44, said, "Although Yantian Port was the epicenter of this accident, these numbers have caused trouble for the entire shipping industry, especially for companies that rely on these routes. Even freight that has not been directly affected by the Yantian situation will be affected as operators adjust their networks to avoid congestion

Josh Brazil stated that as of June 24th, the number of blank voyages is still increasing, and there will be a decline thereafter, depending on the continued control of the epidemic in the port and southern China region.

Maersk stated that as of June 21st, the yard density in Nansha has reached 100%, and it is expected that ships in Nansha Port will continue to be delayed for 4-5 days in the coming week. Nansha only accepts export containers loaded seven days before the expected arrival time of the vessel, and only accepts advance bookings from truck transport companies confirmed at the port. The supply of 40 foot containers in Yantian and Shekou is still tight, and Maersk suggests customers use 20 foot containers as an alternative.

Shekou Port, including Chiwan Container Terminal, Mawan Container Terminal, and Shekou Container Terminal, has tightened regulations and only accepts locks loaded with export goods within 4 days before the expected arrival time of ships.

Shekou Port (including Chiwan Container Terminal, Mawan Container Terminal, and Shekou Container Terminal) has tightened regulations and only accepts export bookings within 4 days before the arrival of the vessel. As for Yantian itself, Maersk reported that the operational capacity of the eastern terminal area is about 54% of normal capacity and is gradually recovering, with yard density dropping to 60%. Maersk expects that flights to Yantian will be delayed for more than 4 days in the coming week.

On June 21st, Maersk reported that the number of ships operated by Maersk and its partners that have cancelled their calls to salt fields has increased from 84 last week to 90. The containers carrying imported goods on these ships are expected to be delayed for more than three weeks.

Project44 warns that even if operations resume normal, it may take several weeks to process the backlog of containers. The analyst said, "If the Chinese authorities extend their strict control measures, the daily double-digit blank sailing rate may continue until July, causing chaos in the supply chain of this globally important port until the summer

At present, the consolidation market is facing various problems caused by cargo backlog, ship delays, port hopping, container and space shortages. According to analysis, once the port resumes normal operations, it is expected that there will be a surge in demand for goods exports in the next 2-5 weeks, as well as a chain reaction caused by the interruption of empty container allocation returning to South China. The subsequent impact of this event will last for more than six months.

Flexport CEO Ryan Petersen stated that there is currently no single solution to address the shipping delays that disrupt the global economy. Resolving this global shipping delay may take some time, especially with the upcoming holiday season and Christmas.

At the same time, persistent congestion, shortage of transportation capacity and equipment are driving container freight rates up continuously. On June 17th, Drury's World Container Composite Index rose 3.4%, or $231, to $6957.44 per FEU. The price of Shanghai Rotterdam has increased by 6% compared to the previous week, reaching $11196 per standard box, a year-on-year increase of 534%. Drury expects rates to increase in the coming week due to the implementation of GRI, high production, and equipment shortages.

The congestion in southern China has led to congestion surcharges imposed by shipping companies, with FAK and insurance premiums continuing to rise. During the week ending June 18th, S&P Global Platts stated that the premium service fee for goods traveling from North Asia to the Pacific coast of the United States was $9000-10000/FEU. The freight rates to the Atlantic coast of the United States (from the Atlantic to the East Coast) are significantly higher than those across the Pacific, with all premium booking prices exceeding $15000/FEU. However, sources say that the freight rates are close to $18000 to $20000/FEU. A North American shipper stated that "premiums are approaching FAK rates for March and April. ”The circulation of inland containers at the destination port is slow, resulting in an increase in empty flights and further increases in freight rates. Even premium services cannot guarantee cabin space. It is recommended to book the shipment four weeks in advance.

Asia United States (Trans Pacific route): Limited cabin space on the west/east coast of North America; Due to multiple factors such as port congestion, shipping schedule delays, imbalanced capacity, and inland transportation delays, as well as the sustained strong demand for imports in the Americas, multiple shipping companies have announced the increase and imposition of GRI and PSS starting from July; It is inevitable that freight rates will further increase in July. It should be noted that due to port congestion and insufficient supply of transportation capacity, the pressure of empty container rotation has increased; The shipping company limits the acceptance of goods from inland points.

Asia Europe route: Strong demand in the European and Mediterranean markets, very tight cabin availability, steady increase in SCFI index for the European route, and freight rates reaching historic highs; Due to the epidemic prevention and control measures in southern China, the dock has tightened its operating procedures and operations are slow; Ships have gradually cancelled docking at Yantian Port, and some goods have chosen to be shipped northward from East China. The shortage of containers in the East China market will further intensify in the coming weeks. Freight rates will continue to rise.