Shippers are looking for alternate cargo options from Southeast Asia as supply chain instability in China’s key port cities persists. The container port in Shanghai, which is generally the busiest in the world, has remained running despite officials implementing a three-tier system to gradually remove restrictions. However, the shortage of trucking capacity has left supply lines in disarray. Some carriers, including as Maersk and ONE, have begun to discontinue Shanghai calls in favour of multimodal services like land-to-water or rail. “And due to trucking and entry problems, some yards in Shanghai port are under pressure. Maersk, Hapag-Lloyd, MSC, ONE and others have said dangerous goods and reefer containers will be transferred to other ports for unloading.”
One contact said China’s ministry of transport had issued instructions to “restore reefer transport and clearance of refrigerated cargo”, possibly due to perishables supply chain troubles being reported throughout the city.
According to Norman Global Logistics (NGL), The Alliance has cancelled 36 sailings to Shanghai and the Ocean Alliance, six. Export volumes have increasingly shifted to Ningbo, but NGL said supply chain conditions were again deteriorating in that city, too, adding: “The situation at China’s second biggest port has worsened, with more Covid-cases and measures introduced. “This has combined with a lot of shippers trying to re-route cargo from Shanghai through Ningbo, especially those in Jiangsu, Anhui and Sichuan provinces.” Meanwhile, President Xi is reportedly sticking to his zero-Covid policy, casting further doubt over when the bout of self-inflicted supply chain pain in China will end.
