Category: Supply Chain

2M’s Maersk and MSC will cancel four sailings from Asia during Chinese New Year, while THE Alliance will skip three Asia–Mediterranean services in late March and early April, in an effort to restore schedule integrity. The lines are insistent that the measures are necessary, with Maersk sa... Read more

Mounting container losses at sea are raising concerns about the effectiveness of current lashing practices and the likelihood of vessel loads being restricted on larger container vessels, reducing market capacity even further. More than 2,650 containers have been lost overboard in two incident... Read more

Even if ‘one swallow does not a summer make’ we fervently hope that one container index’s ‘positive trend’ really does signify a turning point in container shortages. The container selling and leasing platform Container xChange, track and compare the global availability of containers... Read more

Increasing numbers of exporters are struggling to acquire critical transit documents, which allow goods to cross borders within the European Union, because of delays at issuing offices and difficulties obtaining or increasing transit guarantees. The Common Transit Convention (CTC) allows truck... Read more

Massive and continuing post-lockdown consumer demand has resulted in a lack of available space on vessels, shortage of empty shipping containers in Asia and congestion at destination ports, driving freight rates to levels never before experienced. Taking issues that have perplexed shippers sin... Read more

Optimism in signs that the equipment shortage crisis might improve after Chinese New Year, have been dealt a blow with the surprise announcement of blanked Asia to UK sailings, despite it being widely reported that carriers would not be using this tactic this year. 2M alliance members Maersk a... Read more

In a customer advisory last week we outlined the current situation and challenges in relation to the inbound ocean freight container trade from Asia (China, Far East, South East Asia and The Indian Subcontinent) into The UK and Europe. We highlighted the unprecedented challenges in Asia regard... Read more

The equipment shortage in China and Asia and the lack of vessel space on primary trade lanes are continuing to present significant supply chain challenges and while the UK’s port and transport infrastructure continues to struggle, stability is emerging in some areas. The port and terminal di... Read more

As consumer demand for Asian-made goods rebounded in the second half of 2020, the shipping lines decision to remove capacity by idling vessels and stop replenishing container supplies, had an almost instant impact on freight rates with the unbalanced sea freight supply and demand equation driving... Read more

British Airways’ (BA) cargo handling operation at Heathrow airport had been threatened with significant disruption following the announcement of further strikes, by members of the Unite union, in a nine day continuation of the action that started last December. The cargo handlers have calle... Read more

As part of their preparation for the UK’s new EU trading relationship the government committed to build new inland border facilities, to carry out customs compliance, transit, and Sanitary and Phytosanitary checks, including one facility opened beside Metro’s midland freight hub.  Sev... Read more

As Metro reported in last week’s supply chain bulletin, the availability of container equipment has become the primary supply chain issue for shippers and importers from China and Asia in general.  The lack of equipment is a key issue impacting both rates and supply chains across Asia, ... Read more