First, the freight rates in the West and East U.S. routes continue to fluctuate at a relatively high level. The Civil Aviation Administration has called for the suspension of "passenger-to-cargo conversion". Air freight capacity is tight, and freight rates to the U.S. have risen!
Second, due to port congestion, Wan Hai Shipping previously stated that it was transferring vessels from its six Asia-Western US routes to its intra-Asia routes. Zim Shipping-Zim has worked with Wan Hai to divert ships on the Asia-US West Coast route and suspend its express service to Los Angeles for at least seven weeks.
Third, Maersk’s latest market information report released on the 24th predicts that overall demand in December will remain strong. Congestion in North American ports has deteriorated recently. The waiting time for ships in Los Angeles/Long Beach/Seattle has increased to 21 days. Port congestion will still result in empty voyages and shortage of capacity.
Fourth, executives in the US shipping industry pointed out that the freight railroad has recently lifted restrictions on cargo entering the Chicago container terminal. The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are still flooded with containers, and the flow of inbound cargo has not decreased. Moreover, the waiting time from anchorage to Los Angeles berth is still increasing due to the chaos of landside logistics including terminals, trucks, railroads and warehouses. As of the 24th, the average waiting time for ships to berth has hit a record high of 18.8 days.
Fifth, due to the large-scale infection of the new crown by the local demolition personnel of LAX in Los Angeles, CA has notified the cancellation of all passenger aircraft cargo flights and passenger changes from December 1-10. CZ has followed up and cancelled more than 10 flights. MU expects Will follow up too.
