Category: Coronavirus

The air freight market remains in a very different environment, to pre-pandemic conditions, with the vast majority of the world’s passenger aircraft fleet grounded and air cargo capacity a fraction of what it should be. During September we observed steady price increases by the remaining ope... Read more

Manufacturing output continued to rise in September, after the three-month low recorded in June. September saw manufacturing continue its recovery from the steep Covid-19 induced downturn, as global importers continue to demand goods from the UK. The IHS Markit Manufacturing Purchasing Mana... Read more

Container freight rates are at their highest levels in five years, Westbound Asia to Europe, driven by rocketing demand and the carriers manipulating capacity to create under or balanced supply, which allows the shipping lines to cherry-pick the best paying cargo and maintain rates at the st... Read more

The global air cargo sector is recovering alongside improving economic activity and while most regions are on an upward swing, at different paces, volumes in Latin America have struggled amidst challenging economic and health conditions. Despite growing uncertainty in COVID19 developments,&nbs... Read more

With passenger flights significantly and severely reduced on most trade lanes, scarcity of air cargo space is ongoing, spot prices are entirely unpredictable and the market, in constant flux, is preparing for a major peak season from Asia. Data from aviation analyst Cirium shows that 3,762 wid... Read more

The ongoing impact of Coronavirus on the workforce and terminal operating practices at Felixstowe has reduced productivity which, with unexpected demand spikes, has resulted in high yard density impeding operations and prompted drastic action from port management.  To clear backlogs and e... Read more

Port operations have been severely diminished and inland distribution massively disrupted by the coronavirus, lockdowns and safe-working practices, which delay the unloading of containers and repositioning of equipment back to China. As European importers struggle to return empty containers to... Read more

The perfect storm threatening container haulage  There is not an industry sector that has not been impacted to some extent by the COVID-19 pandemic. Even those deemed ‘essential’ have had to battle unprecedented economic and operational challenges, but few have felt the impact quite a... Read more

In a recent survey, reported by the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply (CIPS), 41% of firms said that they have found “new and better” suppliers to work with as a direct result of coronavirus. The survey also found that 57% found the outbreak an “incentive” to ma... Read more

As the container shipping lines continue to control capacity tightly, announcing a new series of blanked sailings in October on the Asia - Europe trade, they are preparing for their annual contract negotiations with the largest shippers on the critical route, with many anticipating higher long te... Read more

European ports used to be the world’s busiest and largest ports, but have been eclipsed by the impact of globalisation and the massive growth of container ports in Asia.  European ports still have a major role to play in global trade and, as an island nation, particularly so for the UK.... Read more

The trade press continue to report that trans-Atlantic demand is reduced by the pandemic and that carriers are adding to blanking programmes, while we have evidence of shipping lines refusing bookings due to lack of space. While blanked sailings have been reinstated on the transpacific and ext... Read more