Mega ship congestion in China paralyzes world trade: the situation continues to worsen

FOCUS Online / WochitCorona outbreak at the Chinese port intensifies global freight congestion

Tuesday, July 6th, 2021, 9:30 am

The congestion in container shipping in the south of China continues to hinder the global flow of goods massively. Experts consider this problem to be at least as serious as the congestion in the Suez Canal. The reason for the delay in the Chinese Yantian is a corona outbreak among dock workers.

"The number of waiting container ships in the Chinese Pearl River Delta is unusually high. Individual ports such as Yantian have shipped less than half of their usual container volume," reported the Kiel Institute for the World Economy on Monday.

"At present, almost five percent of all container ship capacities are tied up by traffic jams at the Chinese ports. That is more than in the first corona wave." In the Red Sea between North Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, "currently ten percent fewer container ships are on the way than would be expected."

"If a port is affected, it can turn into a downward spiral"
The traffic jam in the Chinese port of Yantian, triggered by a corona outbreak among dock workers, has long been considered a bigger problem in the shipping industry than the one-week traffic jam on the Suez Canal, which was caused by the accident of the container freighter "Ever Given" at the end of March.

Traffic jam in the Suez Canal - "That would be catastrophic": Experts warn of capsizing of the "Ever Given" during salvage

The world's largest container shipping company Maersk last signaled to its customers on Friday that the congestion in Yantian was gradually resolving - "but it should be noted that if one port is affected, this can lead to a downward spiral for neighboring ports."

The corona-related disruptions in global container shipping are one of the causes of material bottlenecks in Europe. According to many economists, they ensure that, for example, German industry can only partially process its bulging order books.

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