Newsletter – April 22, 2021

AIR FREIGHT UPDATES

Air freight market ‘going nuts’, with volumes and rates climbing

theloadstar.com
The air freight market is “going nuts”, with “monstrous rates”, with lanes into the US particularly affected.
Volumes out of China have been increasing “week by week”, said one Shanghai forwarder.
“The US market is the worst in terms of the rate level, while Hong Kong to the US could soon be more than HK$100 (US$12.88) per kg.” Read more here (login required).

Worldwide air cargo traffic volumes up 21% in March

lloydsloadinglist.com
Air cargo traffic in March showed year-on-year (YoY) worldwide growth of 21%, the corresponding month of last year having been significantly impacted by COVID-19, according to the latest analysis by WorldACD. Read more here.

OCEAN FREIGHT UPDATES

Carriers ‘scraping the barrel’ for tonnage as charter supply squeeze goes on

theloadstar.com
Carriers are “scraping the bottom of the barrel” for available tonnage, as the percentage of the global containership fleet commercially idle and not in dry dock has fallen to just 0.8%.
And according to the latest Alphaliner survey, the severe shortage of open tonnage is obliging potential charterers to significantly streamline the assessment process of candidates. Read more here (login required)

Box troubles still hitting forwarders in China and India as prices keep rising

theloadstar.com
As container prices in China and India continue to surge, local forwarders are “busier than ever” trying to secure space.
Leasing platform Container xChange said there were “few signs” of shortages being resolved, highlighting steep increases in the prices of new and used equipment since last year. Read more here (login required).

Latin America to North America West Coast – Booking Stop

hapag-lloyd.com
The accumulated operational constraints at North America West Coast ports are heavily affecting the schedule integrity of our services connecting Latin America export cargoes. As result, we are facing challenging transshipment operations and congestion in our main hubs of Cartagena (Colombia) and Manzanillo (Mexico). Read more here.

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS – GOVERNMENT UPDATES

Sourcing survey reveals the countries pulling buyers away from China

theloadstar.com
Vietnam, India and Turkey are leading the sourcing diversification charge away from China, according to a new survey.
Qima, a Hong Kong-based supply chain compliance firm, surveyed 700 companies with international supply chains over the first quarter and found that, while sourcing in China is “bouncing back strongly”, it has not yet returned to pre-Covid levels. Read more here (login required).