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.
Shipping lines are seeing higher cargo volumes and successfully integrating newly built vessels into their fleets, says Textainer’s CEO.
“It is extremely difficult to announce a reasonable business forecast at this time,” said ONE, citing container shipping market uncertainties.
Because container liner profits plummeted off an extraordinarily high peak, some carriers are still posting hefty profits despite huge declines.
Despite ongoing controversy over shareholder treatment, analyst Michael Webber says shipping is doing a better job.
Two of the top three global logistics powers took a big profit haircut during the second quarter and aren’t very optimistic about a seasonal upturn in shipping.
A decline in loaded import volumes pulled the Georgia Ports Authority’s overall 2023 volumes lower.
After rapidly expanding its fleet during the boom, ocean carrier Zim is backpedaling and shedding ships.
Container lines did not manage post-boom vessel capacity as well as expected. In the trans-Pacific, they may be belatedly getting the hang of it.
Expectations for peak season have waned, but container lines may have bounced off the bottom.
Spreads between high- and low-sulfur fuels are down to pandemic levels and LNG has become much more economical.
Mediterranean Shipping Co. is part of a new breed of ocean carriers trying their hand as cargo airlines.
Shipowners have invested billions in the LNG fuel option in the belief that it will benefit regulatory compliance and the environment.
Fiscal year 2023 volumes tracked more with 2021 volumes than with 2022, which had experienced an unprecedented cargo boom, according to South Carolina Ports.
U.S. rail imports from Vancouver and Prince Rupert are imperiled again. ILWU Canada has rejected the proposed dockworkers contract.
Shipping stocks in sectors with high deliveries of new ships are doing better than those with low orderbooks.
The extended strike in western Canada was beginning to affect U.S. supply chains. Its resolution limits the fallout.
Sulfur pollution addressed by IMO 2020 created a health risk, but that pollution had a cooling effect, which has now been reduced.
The agreement should keep tanker and bulker orders in check, while increasing the risk of a future carbon tax on container shippers.
June volumes of containerized imports were higher than normal and the National Retail Federation predicts more gains ahead.
U.S. imports via Canadian ports face rising fallout as the war of words escalates between dockworkers and employers.
As the labor strike continues at the ports of Vancouver and Prince Rupert, Class I railroads are taking steps to ensure that their networks face minimal disruptions.
Two New Jersey firefighters died fighting a blaze aboard the Grimaldi car carrier Grande Costa d’Avorio at Port Newark on Wednesday night.
Sluggish demand is capping shipping lines’ income. In response, at least one carrier is reportedly moving to limit losses on legacy charters.
Declining demand for Chinese exports and reduced stimulus options threaten bulk commodity import prospects.
The Wagner mutiny is drawing attention to what happens after the war in Ukraine ends. When it does, shipping will see major changes.
The Port of Cleveland thinks it has the capabilities to grow its footprint.
Concerns over highly dilutive share offerings by microcap shipowners have been building for years. The debate just intensified.
Trans-Pacific spot shipping rates remain under pressure, slumping back again as U.S. import demand comes up short.
The U.S. supply chain has dodged a bullet. A new dockworker labor deal will keep the peace at West Coast ports.
“Patience is wearing thin. Neither side imagined it would take this long,” says the head of the Port of LA on dockworker contract talks.
This year’s peak season could see West Coast labor disruptions coincide with Panama Canal water levels impeding cargo flows to the East Coast.
Dockworkers who keep West Coast cargo flowing are highly paid. Their bid for even higher pay is starting to affect the cargo flow.
Demand remains tepid, yet shipping lines have pushed spot rates off the bottom and secured contract rates above spot levels.
The dockworkers’ union and terminal employers are still sparring over wages and benefits more than a year after contract talks began.
Older ships are being kept in service longer in pursuit of profits, heightening the risk of accidents and spills.
Union Pacific’s expanded service allows ocean carriers and BCOs to utilize on-dock rail at the Barbours Cut Container Terminal at Port Houston.
Canadian Pacific Kansas City is adding 1,000 refrigerated intermodal containers to its Mexico railroad business.
Not all cargo markets are back to pre-COVID “normal.” Container shipping rates to South America remain elevated.
More signs are surfacing that the second half of the year won’t be a panacea to the international freight recession. Seko Logistics says there won’t be a surge in orders that fuels transportation spending.
Bed Bath & Beyond “failed to manage its own supply chain” and “exacerbated the bottlenecks faced by other shippers,” alleges OOCL.
Zim outperformed competitors on the way up and is falling faster than other carriers on the way down.
Trans-Pacific spot rates have pared earlier gains and remain at loss-making levels. Demand has yet to rebound.
An annual survey from Descartes shows how brokers and forwarders are adjusting to the downside of the cycle.
Outsize profits are still flowing to companies like Danaos and Costamare that lease ships to container lines.
The container shipping party is over — that’s old news. Yet headlines continue to focus on comparisons to the peak.
It is becoming increasingly clear that hopes of a container boost from the reopening of China are all but gone.
The CEO of shipping line Hapag-Lloyd argues that current freight rates are unsustainable and will correct upward over time.
Is the sharp decline in shipping stocks a canary in the coal mine or an opportunity for investors to buy the dip?
The 14,000-TEU One Stork on Tuesday became the largest container ship to call Jacksonville, Florida.
America’s imports are not signaling a recession, at least not yet. Inbound volumes are rising from the bottom.
Inventory destocking is the biggest container shipping headwind, says Maersk. Its data shows no evidence of inventory pressures alleviating yet.
Maritime and logistics services company Crowley and Canadian railway CN have joined in a new service that will connect Canada, the Midwest and the Gulf Coast of Mexico.
Further downside risks to the U.S. economy make the odds of a rebound in containerized import volumes unlikely.
Bed Bath & Beyond got pummeled by the supply chain crisis. The company is now targeting shipping lines for allegedly compounding its woes.
The Europe-U.S. trade held up a lot longer than the Asia-U.S. trade, but trans-Atlantic premiums are now fading away.
Cargo flow fell slightly at ports in Houston and New Orleans in March but increased at the Port of Corpus Christi in South Texas.
As new container ships flood the market amid weak demand, Drewry expects low freight rates to persist through 2024.
Not to be outdone by CPKC, CN said it is partnering with Union Pacific and Grupo México to provide a new, cross-continent intermodal service that will seek more truck-to-rail conversions.
There is growing sentiment that higher trans-Pacific spot rates will not hold and prospects for shipping lines remain weak.
Executive Director Mario Cordero says the Port of Long Beach is “ready for a rebound in retail.”
SC Ports’ Inland Port Dillon handled record rail moves in March, although volumes for the port authority overall were down year over year.
“We are starting to see ocean carriers systematically take geopolitical risk into consideration,” says Xeneta’s Erik Devetak.
Jefferies’ Omar Nokta believes container shipping investors are starting to look toward “the end of the destock and beginning of the restock.”
Many industries are enjoying high profits from historic inflation. The furniture industry isn’t one of them. Thank the supply chain crisis.
Triton International entered an agreement to be acquired for $13.3 billion by Brookfield Infrastructure Partners.
“Simply put, there’s no bigger priority right now than this contract agreement,” says Gene Seroka of the Port of Los Angeles.
Although import volumes show signs of a nascent recovery, the inventory overhang remains daunting.
First-quarter numbers from container lines Cosco, OOCL and Evergreen show lingering upside from the tail end of the boom.
After labor unrest closed Los Angeles and Long Beach on Friday, ports on the East and Gulf coasts look even more attractive.
Worsening China-U.S. relations underscore how pivotal geopolitics has become to global shipping and trade.
American shipping magnate believed in efficiency and economies of scale in operating the world’s largest ships.
The Port of Virginia has plans to expand capacity at its inland port and at the Richmond Marine Terminal, while CSX has reached a sick leave agreement with another union group.
Despite a collapse in freight rates, container shipping is not behaving like an industry facing an imminent crisis.
The trend in container shipping is summed up by the adage, “The higher you climb, the further you have to fall.”
Surging costs after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine could be a taste of things to come as shipping transitions to more expensive “green” fuels.
A fifth of U.S. containerized imports come from Europe. Shipping on this route remains much more expensive than it used to be.
Although February volumes at SC Ports were down 13% year over year, they still represented the second-highest total for the month in port history.
Flexport projects trans-Pacific contract rates will decline around 70% from 2022 levels but still be around 30% above current spot rates.
U.S. importers have forsaken their traditional gateway in Southern California. Many may be gone for good.
Quarterly net losses could be around the corner for container lines, but EBITDA will stay high even if carriers dip into the red.
The Georgia Ports Authority reported its second-busiest February ever.
Shipping line Zim could face net losses in the quarters ahead, yet it has a hefty cash cushion to soften the blow.
U.S. businesses overshot in 2022, importing way more than they needed. The hangover is in full swing, depressing 2023 imports.
Supply chain issues are in the rearview mirror for Fed inflation policy, but for importers, there’s still room for improvement.
Container lines are unable to prop up rates because they haven’t culled enough capacity to compensate for weak demand.
Shipping lines like Hapag-Lloyd have suffered sharp rate falls from the peak, but they’re nowhere near financial distress.
Kuehne + Nagel had a highly profitable year in 2022 despite macroeconomic headwinds, but results fell considerably in the fourth quarter along with transport demand.
Charter rates are far below the peak but higher than pre-COVID as liners continue to sign new container-ship leases.
The Port of Virginia says it’s nearly done with its channel deepening project, which will enable the port to allow for two-way traffic of ultra-large container vessels.
After a year of sanctions and “self sanctions,” shipping cargoes caught in the crossfire continue to find their way to buyers.
New Alphaliner data highlights the enormity of new container shipping capacity that’s poised for delivery.
Two container shipping experts give their take on how the hangover after the pandemic boom could play out.
Los Angeles continues to face a double whammy of sinking demand and fears over the port labor contract that expired in July.
The Georgia Ports Authority said a 16% drop in imports year over year “was fueled in part by reduced orders in retail and manufacturing.”
HMM acknowledged that “freight rates in most key trade lanes have been under downward pressure since H1 2022.”
Ocean carrier Zim will increase the frequency and size of ships used for its e-commerce Baltimore Express service.
Executive Director Mario Cordero said he is optimistic the Port of Long Beach will recapture market share.
Ocean carrier revenues fell sharply in the fourth quarter versus the third and continued sinking in January.
After a bounce in January, containerized imports could drop this month to the lowest level since May 2020.
Ocean carrier Maersk sees a rough second half of the year, when remaining support from contract rates “will disappear.”
