The global shipping industry is constantly evolving, and the COVID-19 pandemic began a marked shift in how container shipping operates. Disruption caused by the pandemic has forced the industry to expand its capacity and reduce costs to remain profitable.
At the peak of the pandemic, containers essentially stopped moving. As manufacturers went into lockdown and closed factories, many of the containers used to ship those manufactured goods were left stranded at ports or storage depots, where they weren’t needed. Simultaneously, freight shippers were reducing the number of vessels in use due to the manufacturing slowdown. This limited global shipping capacity and disrupted the worldwide flow of containers and goods. As a result, some regions were left with an excess of stored containers, while other places were left with no containers at all.
As the pandemic slowed and the global economy began to rebound, labor shortages and congestion at ports have left many of these stored containers stuck where they aren’t needed. Now, instead of a shortage of shipping containers, the industry is dealing with too many. Many container storage depots are turning away new clients due to lack of space, and some shippers are even giving containers away to make room. Blank and cancelled sailings are increasing as well, as shippers decide to skip a port or cancel a trip altogether in order to manage changes in demand and capacity.
Check back here for the latest news and insights on the state of the container shipping industry. You can also visit our maritime news archive to learn more about cargo shipping, or our American Shipper archive for air cargo shipping industry news.
The Ever Given, stuck in the Suez Canal for six days in March, finally berthed at the Port of Rotterdam on Thursday.
Supply chain congestion is more about issues with throughput among various stakeholders and less about Norfolk Southern’s ability to handle volumes, executives said during NS’ second-quarter 2021 earnings call Wednesday.
Despite all-time-high container production, demand continues to outpace supply and new box prices keep rising.
Matson is adding a seasonal express service to help deal with the upcoming peak shipping season from China. But will it help with freight transportation delays?
JAXPORT saw a 15% increase in container volume and a 20% growth in vehicle volumes for the first three quarters of its 2021 fiscal year, the Florida port said Monday.
APM Terminals on the U.S. Gulf Coast wants potential importing customers to know it has access to the Midwest via five Class I railroads.
Shanghai, the largest container port in the world, has stopped operations because of a big storm.
Vietnam is the newest epicenter for supply chain chaos. Manufacturing and port activity have been cut by new COVID precautions.
Kuehne + Nagel is one of the largest third-party logistics providers in the world and it got larger in the second quarter.
Fiscal year 2021 was a record year at the Port of Virginia, with an increase in loaded imports and volume growth for empty export boxes.
The ocean carrier said Monday that BNSF is reducing import traffic at the ports of LA and Long Beach, while inbound trains from New York area ocean terminals to three Midwestern destinations are also being monitored.
Despite epic container rates and hefty dry bulk profits, stocks fell by double digits over the past three weeks.
Container ships in the congestion-plagued trans-Pacific trade have stepped on the gas, with some vessels now topping 20 knots.
The seven-day suspension of service, starting on Sunday, is aimed at helping ocean carriers, UP and other stakeholders to catch up and relieve the congestion at West Coast ports and busy inland terminals, especially Chicago.
Wave of cargo delayed by COVID outbreak in Yantian, China, is starting to hit California’s already strained terminals.
Fiscal year 2021 was not only a banner year for South Carolina Ports but also a roller coaster one as volume lows in July 2020 transitioned quickly to record number of TEUs handled.
With 39 ships at anchor, the Port of Vancouver is continuing to feel the strain as CP and CN resume service in a fire-afflicted region of British Columbia.
“I think we need to squash the whole thing and start over,” said Kempisty.
An in-depth look at CEO compensation in container shipping, bulk shipping and the cruise industry
New disclosures by lines point to massive ocean-carrier profits in the second quarter.
A disruption to CN and CP rail service caused by a wildfire is putting the Port of Vancouver under pressure as Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd warn of delays and congestion.
More box ships, bulkers and tankers are changing hands than ever before — good news for ship values and stocks.
The saga of the Ever Given moves to its next chapter as the container ship that captured the world’s attention when it became wedged between the banks of the Suez Canal in March is released from custody in Egypt to resume its voyage to the Netherlands.
The biggest container shipping line in the world says container traffic at the massive Port of Yantian in China is moving much better after COVID restrictions were recently lifted. But exporters have a long way to go before ocean shipments go smoothly again.
Ocean carriers could make up for two decades’ worth of losses in a single year as demand overwhelms vessel supply.
NS is working to repair a defect that could affect over 5,000 chassis. The repairs come amid high congestion at terminals and intermodal facilities across the U.S.
California offshore traffic jam, Ever Given, Yantian closure, skyrocketing rates and volumes … what’s next for container shipping?
TRAC Intermodal details in a case study how it partnered with ZIM Integrated Shipping Services to develop a dedicated chassis pool at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.
Federal funding and private investments lend support to the supply chain infrastructure surrounding the Port of Savannah.
More problems loom for importers of Asian containerized goods and tanker slump could last even longer.
The South Korean ocean carrier says the newbuilds will provide the “capacity and flexibility” to serve its shippers.
May’s container movements at the Jacksonville port beat the previous record set in October 2019.
The Port of Yantian is operating at 100% on the vessel side again after a month of delays, but that doesn’t mean the container buildup will get resolved soon.
A year and a half after COVID emerged in Wuhan, China’s exporters, liners, shipyards and container factories are all booming.
A potential strike by Canada Border Services Agency officers threatens to disrupt the country’s supply chains. The Port of Vancouver could feel the most pain.
The project to expand the Howard Street Tunnel has received federal environmental approvals, bringing the $466 million project closer to fruition. The expansion will enable the tunnel to accommodate double-stacked container trains, which could benefit the nearby Port of Baltimore.
There has never been a better time to own container ships and lease them to liners. But some owners are selling ships and cashing out.
Normally big projects are scheduled during slow periods, but the Port of Savannah can’t wait to deepen its berths so there will be extra cargo delays for a few weeks.
An agreement reportedly has been reached that will allow the Ever Given to finally resume the voyage halted when the container ship became wedged between the Suez Canal banks in March.
Hapag-Lloyd now will add 12 23,500-TEU container ships to its fleet beginning in 2023.
Americans are spending more on services. Contrary to predictions, this has yet to curb demand for containerized goods.
Ocean carriers and Class I railroads both agree that chassis shortages are contributing to volume congestion. But solutions to relieve the congestion rely on multiple supply chain stakeholders, say the railroads.
Spot pricing has surged even higher, propelled by carrier rate hikes and China congestion fallout.
The report says that North America will be less appealing than Asia in the eyes of business, at least through mid-decade.
“We know larger ships carrying increased volumes are coming. We want to be out in front of that curve.”
Port Tampa Bay will become one of three Gulf Coast ports accepting containerized cargo from fruit importer Dole.
The headline number for May retail sales was a sequential decline. What may have been lost in the report is that consumers are continuing to spend at a record-setting pace, which bodes well for freight flows.
There’s fintech and FreightTech. PayCargo plays in both spheres and is well supported by investors.
May was the busiest month in the 114-year history of America’s busiest port.
Former chief mate of MSC Gayane gets seven years behind bars for lead role in massive 2019 smuggling operation.
South Carolina Ports is touting two new export facilities projects that will have access to the Port of Charleston: a production facility and distribution center for winemaker Gallo and an agricultural transload facility run by Northwest Grains.
South Korean shipping line HMM says it was victim of a cyberattack that caused outages to its e-mail systems.
Decision to secure dedicated vessel highlights unprecedented strength of container shipping and risks faced by importers.
Container spot rates spiked again, with new records set. For importers, the worst is yet to come.
The “unprecedented” influx of imports continues on the West and East coasts.
Rising fuel costs are yet another woe for containerized cargo shippers, while widening spreads should benefit ships with scrubbers.
“With our sustained focus on supply chain digitization, infrastructure investments and strong business relationships, we have the opportunity to build on this historic milestone,” says Executive Director Gene Seroka.
Consolidation in the liner sector is already extreme. Newbuild orders will further concentrate market power in fewer hands.
From A.P. Møller – Maersk to ZIM, the world’s shipping lines reported huge profit jumps.
Congestion is cutting liner capacity just as freight rates are at all-time highs, incentivizing carriers to buy or charter more ships.
Environmental regs could extend future dry bulk and tanker upside, while consolidation could change curve of container-shipping cycle.
The cranes cost $21.6 million to construct; a price tag on vessel and cargo damage has not yet been estimated.
There was a fair amount of “feel-good” talk regarding inventory build during the fiscal first-quarter retail earnings season. But for several chains, the year-over-year comparisons were easy. Further, sales have continued at an elevated clip, suggesting the massive merchandise restocking is far from over.
Retailers at increasing risk of not getting goods from Asia on shelves as ocean transport system hits limit.
Freight forwarder will pay “absolute historic high” to secure container ship as “people are panicking” amid “out of control” market.
A mid-May blaze inside the roll-on/roll-off vessel was just the latest incident that halted removal of the Golden Ray, which capsized in September 2019.
After an 85% revenue jump, the South Korean carrier turns its attention to meeting its carbon neutrality target.
Ships at anchor are unlikely to clear by peak season. Congestion is forcing wide-scale voyage cancellations.
“Demand for products and services both domestically and abroad is driving significant gains in Georgia’s cargo volumes,” says Executive Director Griff Lynch.
“The supply of container equipment is currently one of our industry’s biggest challenges,” says Hapag-Lloyd CEO Rolf Habben Jansen.
Get your cameras ready along the coasts of Georgia and South Carolina.
The containers that U.S. shippers need are all built in China, where factories could set a new production record this year.
How bad is it? A Vietnam-New York slot was just offered at $19,000 per FEU, reveals Flexport’s Nerijus Poskus.
ZIM is the liner most exposed to upside from America’s import binge. It’s taking full advantage of the situation.
Dan Kopp, CEO of freight brokerage ITG Transportation Services, joins Trey Griggs, VP of sales at Lean Solutions Group, to discuss the ocean shipping environment at FreightWaves LIVE @HOME.
With the retail inventory-to-sales ratio still falling, U.S. importers are urged to move fast on their holiday import plans.
The capsized roll-on/roll-off vessel has been on its side near Georgia’s Port of Brunswick since early September 2019.
There have been no reported injuries, pollution or cargo losses aboard the vessel deployed on a ONE Atlantic service.
Freight shipments continue to break records with little signs of slowing. The year-over-year comparisons get tougher in the back half of 2021 but the current supply-demand dynamics may not change all that much.
Container rates are in uncharted territory. If demand continues to outpace supply, there’s little to stop them from ascending further.
“This was by far the busiest April in the port’s 114-year history, outpacing the previous record set just back in 2019 by a hefty 29%.”
The situation for importers is getting even more dire. Already extreme container rates are ascending to even higher peaks.
E-commerce spurs a year-over-year container volume hike of 43.6%.
Containers, vehicles and rail moves contribute to a record April for the South Carolina Ports Authority.
A “truly outstanding quarter” lifts net profit from $27 million in 2020 to $1.45 billion this year.
Danaos will stockpile cash from the current boom and spend it on new ships when environmental regs are clearer.
Airfreight markets around the world are facing serious capacity constraints. Trade growth is overwhelming the physical ability of carriers to move goods and it’s reflected in transport prices.
Formerly containerized cargoes are being loaded onto bulkers. Box-ship orders are keeping future bulker growth in check.
Exported empties contribute to the Port of New York and New Jersey’s monthly volume record.
In the next two weeks, only two container ships are slated to berth at the new Leatherman Terminal. Forty are scheduled at the Port of Charleston’s neighboring Wando Welch Terminal.
Maersk reveals more details on its shift toward long-term contracts at the expense of spot exposure.
Importers are scrambling as demand sails past ocean transport supply. The numbers paint an ominous picture for cargo shippers.
COVID has been great for stocks. In ocean shipping, container and dry bulk shares rode the wave. Tankers stocks sank.
The Port of Montreal is a major trade gateway for Canada. The Canadian government busted up a strike by unionized dockworkers and cargo will start flowing again.
Chinese container production still trails torrid demand. Ever Given accident was ‘icing on the cake’ — making box shortfall worse.
Canadian lawmakers approve legislation to force an end to a strike by Port of Montreal longshoremen.
Now that shipping lines hold the pricing cards, importers must reset strategies, says Sea-Intelligence’s Jochen Gutschmidt.
West Coast congestion could last into the fall as retailers face stockouts on essential goods, says ocean carrier Matson.
DSV Panalpina announced Tuesday it plans to acquire the logistics arm of Agility Public Warehousing for $4.1 billion. The deal is expected to turn the transportation and logistics company into a top 3 forwarder globally.
Trans-Pacific container crunch is about to become even more severe, warns Flexport, with May sailings now effectively sold out.
