Carriers are being forced to skip an increasing number of ports in order to maintain their ships on schedule or, at best, limit delays. We tracked 17 container ships that returned to central China in week 45 after their round trip between the Far East and North Europe.
Out of those 17, only the 20,954 TEU “CMA CGM ANTOINE DE SAINT EXUPERY” arrived on time for her next round voyage. This was only possible after the vessel skipped calls at Yantian (westbound) and Tianjin in North China (eastbound).
The Transatlantic trade is also suffering from congestion in North Europe and the US East Coast. Only one of the nine ships returning to the Benelux area in week 45 after the full round trip completed her voyage within the five weeks stated in the pro forma schedule.
Furthermore, the “AL2” service has no call at Savannah, which is the port that has been worst hit by congestion on the US east coast. Average waiting times at anchorage there have reached eight days, according to the latest operational update published by Hapag-Lloyd.
Source: Alphaliner
