Aperture & Focus: July 8th, 2022

Global Aperture

Tensions rise and demand slides. Europe finds itself in a whirlwind of transport union strikes, bringing multimodal congestion throughout the Schengen region.

Meanwhile, Asia-Pacific receives a windfall of air services, restoring intra-Asia and Asia-Europe connectivity despite softer cargo demand for Asia-US routes.

Latin America’s air market stands as an exception, at least based on trade data compiled by IATA in May, thanks to new services, added capacity, and freighter acquisitions.

Container congestion is back according to global trade analysts, with over one third of box ships reportedly berthed at ports around the world—over $40 billion in cargo are stuck outside major US ports. Dry bulk demand tapers down for transpacific and transatlantic routes as American ports rank highest for detention & demurrage fees, according to a recent industry survey.

Regional Focus

The Americas

Labor contract negotiations between dockworker union leadership and port management go overtime, but cargo operations will continue throughout the West Coast according to a recent joint statement. Ongoing congestion observed at Canada’s Prince Rupert Port is attributed to bottlenecks at the inland terminals of Toronto and Montreal; container dwell times average more than a week. Latin America is not unscathed either: several ports in Mexico have reported yard densities of up to 90%, and ongoing civil unrest throughout Ecuador has blocked major roads and port entrances throughout the country.

Asia-Pacific

Yard density in the East Asia ports of Busan, Ningbo, Singapore rises to uncomfortable levels following the passage of Typhoon Chaba last week—more cargo vessels have been spotted at Shenzhen Port. Sector analysts project that higher passenger demand for transatlantic flights ex-China may ease pressure on outbound freighter capacity, while intra-Asia freighter services by three India-based carriers become a topic of concern after several technical malfunctions forced eight cargo planes to abandon scheduled routes over the past month.

Europe, Middle East & Africa

Port Rotterdam is still heavily congested due to poor vessel transit reliability and the growing excess of imports in the container yard. Many empty containers have been moved to off-site locations. Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport strike ended on July 3 with a settlement reached on July 7, but another union-backed walkout initiated on July 6 disrupts SNCF’s intermodal drayage operations through France, affecting cross-border rail services to adjacent countries.