Farid Tahvildari’s Post

The maritime industry is witnessing a significant shift in operations, with a notable increase in vessel capacity on the eastbound trans-Pacific route. This surge is attributed to the launch or resumption of ten Asian services targeting North America, marking the highest volume of sea freight in this corridor for over three years. The strategic move has led to a stabilization of container spot rates, which had previously been climbing due to a combination of factors including Asia's import surge, diversions caused by Red Sea tensions, and port congestions globally. July's deployment plans by trans-Pacific carriers indicate a 15.6% increase in TEU capacity compared to June, with a projected 2.6 million TEUs set to navigate towards the US coasts. This escalation in capacity correlates with a decrease in blank sailings, suggesting a more robust and consistent shipping schedule. The operational landscape is further complicated by geopolitical factors, such as the avoidance of the Suez Canal by carriers due to security concerns, and labor negotiations on the US East and Gulf coasts that could impact cargo handling. These elements are reshaping trade routes, with some retailers redirecting cargo to the West Coast to mitigate risks. The evolving situation underscores the dynamic nature of global shipping logistics, influenced by a complex interplay of market demands, geopolitical tensions, and labor relations. West Coast experienced a notable rise from 1.16 million TEUs in July of the previous year to 1.55 million TEUs. This upward trend is mirrored on the East Coast, albeit with a smaller increment. Interestingly, spot rates have seen a slight decrease, marking the first reduction since the implementation of bi-monthly rate increases by carriers. This dip in spot rates, with the West Coast at $7,600 per FEU and the East Coast at $9,950 per FEU, suggests a dynamic shift in the market, potentially influenced by various factors such as demand fluctuations, carrier strategies, and broader economic conditions. #maritime #containershipping #suezcanal #vessels #freight #shipping #carriers #cargo #TEU #globalshipping #

The maritime shipping industry is witnessing a significant shift in operational patterns, with container carriers reducing the number of blanked trans-Pacific sailings compared to previous years. This change is largely attributed to the rerouting of vessels due to the Red Sea hostilities, which has led to a reallocation of capacity across global trade lanes. The data from Sea-Intelligence indicates a downward trend in blank sailings, with a notable decrease from 29% in March 2022 to 11.7% in the same month this year. Despite the reduction, the reliability of on-time vessel performance has seen a decline, particularly from Asia to the US coasts. This inconsistency in schedule reliability, coupled with the carriers' tendency to give shorter notice for cancellations, poses a challenge for logistics planning. However, the planned increase in capacity for the Asia-US trades to 2.69 million TEUs in May reflects a proactive approach to meet the anticipated demand, marking the highest level of capacity deployment since the peak of the pandemic-induced import surge. This strategic adjustment by carriers is to optimize the flow of goods and stabilize the supply chain amidst evolving global circumstances. #blanksailing #oceanvessels #oceancontainers #USimports #redsea #vessels #globaltrade #uscoasts #logistics #trades

"All major players have reduced their offers on the services via the Arabian Gulf and Indian Sub-Continent, with this gap now attracting ‘other’ carriers, which now offer around 12% of the capacity deployed on this route.” That has seen the capacity scheduled to be deployed on direct Far East – Europe services are up, and, in contrast, capacity scheduled to be deployed on the Far East – Europe via the Gulf and the Sub-Continent has declined. “In my view this 12% of tonnage deployed by others calling at Gulf and Sub-Continent ports is not going to last, when you look at the share they cover on all Far East – Europe routes, then you see that they account for 4.9% in 2024 Q1 vs 3.6% in 2023 Q1,” #shippinglines #redsea #capacity #competition #shippingindustry https://lnkd.in/ejvRZN64

🚫Blank Sailings Rise Amid Vessel Shortage and Port Congestion via Sea-Intelligence: - Blank sailings increase due to vessel capacity shortage and port congestion. - Asia-North Europe blanked capacity doubles from -12% in March to -21% in April; Asia-Mediterranean decreases from -17% to -8%. - Transpacific trade shows stable reductions of around -14% to the West Coast and -11% to the East Coast in March and April 2024. - Port congestion needs addressing to prevent further spot rate hikes and capacity shortages. Source: https://lnkd.in/dB6wWZ3k ✨🚢 For more, subscribe to Maritime Analytica Insight to stay ahead in container shipping! https://lnkd.in/dH4CEhzt (🥇📊Become Gold Member for market reports) 🌐🔍Save 15% (-$375 off) on container shipping certificates from Lloyd's Maritime Academy! https://lnkd.in/dUaHK5WU 🌍🌟Follow us on YouTube for exclusive insights in just 60 seconds! https://lnkd.in/g3eG8TdQ #ContainerShipping #MaritimeIndustry #ShippingNews #Logistics #SupplyChain #Maersk #CMACGM #HapagLloyd #Carriers #MSC #GlobalTrade #SeaFreight #Freight #Export #Import #AI #Newsletter #MaritimeAnalytica #Sustainability #BigData #ArtificialIntelligence

📈Amidst the ongoing Red Sea conflict and uncertainty in labor contracts at East Coast ports, May's ocean freight rates from Asia to North America neared $5,000 per forty-foot equivalent unit (FEU). Freight rates to the U.S. West Coast increased by 13%, reaching $4,917 per FEU—a 70% rise from April’s low. Rates to the East Coast grew by 18%, reaching $6,323 per FEU. 🤺As capacity remains constrained and demand grows, high rates are expected to persist into the peak season, causing further delays. Key Factors:🧩 👷1. Cargo Relocation and Labor Talks: Upcoming labor negotiations at East and Gulf Coast ports have led shippers to move cargo to the West Coast, spiking demand and freight rates there. 🚧2. Red Sea Risks: Ongoing conflicts necessitate rerouting around the Cape of Good Hope, inflating costs. 🛥️3. Asian Port Congestion: Delays at Southeast Asian ports, particularly Shanghai and Qingdao, have escalated, increasing both delays and operational costs. 🛍️4. Import Growth and Consumer Demand: Rising imports from China and increased U.S. consumer spending are boosting port activity at Los Angeles and Long Beach, with cargo volumes expected to exceed 2 million TEUs by October. Market Insights:📱 ⛲Lars Jensen of Vespucci Maritime highlights similar disruptions to the pandemic period with significant rate increases. However, these disruptions may be less severe than those during the pandemic due to the steady growth in volume. New strategies like off-port container yards are mitigating port challenges. 🛝Stephanie Loomis of Rhenus Logistics remarks on the unpredictability of the year, contrasting hopes for stability with reality. 📩 Send us a message and let us know how we can help #OceanFreight #SupplyChain #GlobalTrade #LogisticsIndustry #MaritimeNews #TradeDisruptions #ShippingTrends #PortOperations #CargoManagement #ImportExport

A year ago, I wrote about our supply chain. I'm now writing about it again because I think it's more relevant than ever... Why? Global sea freight is in a stranglehold. Here's 3 key problems with today's global sea freight (especially shipping from Asia to Europe): 1. Piracy and Houthi Rebels are making the Suez Canal unusable due to a very real threat of death and missile attacks making the route uninsurable for container shipping lines such as Maersk. They are now forced to travel round South Africa instead. This adds another 14 days to the travel time. This then means that there is a backlog of ships arriving in European ports, causing severe delays in goods reaching European businesses and consumers. 2. The above wouldn't be quite so bad if they could instead travel through the world's other big canal: the Panama Canal. However, due to a drought, the Panama Canal's water level is lower than usual - this restricts the size of ships that can travel through it, causing another bottleneck. 3. If the above wasn't enough of a problem, we are now coming up to Christmas, so already the pressure is mounting on global ports as the industry gears up for its peak season. These issues are just the tip of the iceberg for global container shipping, I could talk about many more. All the above is the cause. The effect is that costs and lead times for Asian-made goods has skyrocketed for European businesses and consumers. Why am I bothering to tell you all this? The simple reason is we have an all-UK supply chain, so if you buy from us, you don't need to worry about any of what I have spoken about in this post. This is just one of the benefits of manufacturing solely in the UK. Read my previous post for more. Here is a more in-depth article on the Financial Times on the issues facing global shipping: https://lnkd.in/ekKbk9xT #UKmanufacturing #madeinBritain #SupplyChain

On the transatlantic trade, several shipping lines announced surcharge increases. · Maersk will impose a peak season surcharge (PSS) of $2,000 on cargoes from Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean to Canada from October 23. · CMA CGM will impose a peak season surcharge of $250/TEU and $500/FEU on cargoes from Northern Europe to the East Coast of Canada from October 15. From November 2, the French carrier will apply an additional PSS of $500/TEU and $1,000/FEU on cargoes from Northern Europe, the Mediterranean, the Adriatic, the Black Sea and North Africa to the East Coast of Canada, the United States and the East Coast of Mexico. · MSC will increase its PSS from November 1 until further notice to $1,100/TEU and $2,200/FEU from the Western Mediterranean and the Adriatic to the United States, Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, Canada and Mexico. From Israel to these destinations, PSS will be charged at USD 750/TEU and USD 1,500/FEU.

The rerouting of vessels around southern Africa due to the Red Sea disruptions and the regulatory pressures around decarbonization that will lead to slower ship speeds are two factors that should prompt cargo owners to rethink their inventory strategies. These factors will affect the import lead times and the inventory levels that cargo owners need to maintain. Robert Gates, former head of the US Central Intelligence Agency, at recent conference projected that this situation could last for another two years, which would require a major overhaul of the supply chains. As China-US relations improve and the US has more tools to prevent Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, Gates warned that companies should be more alert to the political risks that affect global supply chains.  He said that the era of relative ease that they have enjoyed in the past decades is largely over. Another factor that would influence inventory levels and import lead times would be slower ship speeds, an operational strategy that was in place before the Red Sea disruptions and one that will continue as ships begin to use more expensive alternative fuels. Both the Red Sea diversions and slower sailing speeds allowed carriers to address excess capacity issues and a large order book that represents almost 25% of the current fleet at 7 million TEUs. A bigger challenge that the shipping industry faces is the excess capacity and the large order book that amounts to almost 25% of the current fleet at 7 million TEUs. However, the market might be able to absorb that capacity, given that no major ship orders were expected in the next three years, and that some of the orders would be delivered late. Moreover, the older ships with bigger and thirstier engines that were designed to sail faster would be scrapped, as they are no longer suitable for the decarbonization goals. Sailing ships slower would create additional demand for tonnage and new ships. #containershipping #suezcanal #shippingcontainers #shippingindustry #inventorycontrol #inventorymanagement #redseacrisis

A recent study found that if the alternative routes around the Red Sea were used for another year, the total distance covered by container ships worldwide — expressed in TEU miles — would increase by 15.6% compared to normal levels. #suezcanal #inventorycontrol #inventoryoptimization #containershipping #containertransport #vesselmanagement #vessels

Ocean Freight News Update - W14 - Vietnam to USA According to the latest update, the shipping situation from Vietnam to the US has remained stable. Spot rate prices continue to decrease below contract prices, making it a reasonable choice for small and medium customers to opt for a spot rate in the first half of April. However, Los Angeles, CA, and Vancouver, BC have experienced high utilization levels, leading to impacted terminal fluidity and vessel stay. This may result in a wait of 1-2 weeks for rail. If your cargo is destined for Toronto, you may want to consider via Halifax. In other news, the recent collapse of the Baltimore Bridge has caused other ships to redirect to neighboring ports. If you have shipments exported from Vietnam to Baltimore during this time, you can consider two routes - Vietnam (Caimep or Haiphong) - New York - Baltimore (long transit time) or IPI from US West coast - Chicago -> Baltimore (fast transit time; higher cost) - especially trucking from CHI -> BAL (from $2500 per standard container). Stay updated with the latest ocean freight news to make informed decisions for your business. #chuthoxayLogistics #freightnews #freightupdate #Vietnamusa #TPEB #freightrate #Price #saleslogistics