What is this News Alert about?
Stockwell International prides itself on offering our clients exceptional customer service and world class logistics. To continue to ensure we keep our promise we would like to offer clients a comprehensive overview of the industry as it is right now. Following a tumultuous few years, we have seen the benefit for clients to be well versed in the goings-on within the supply chain industry and how this can impact your businesses. This news alert will only be sent out once a month.
The below industry information has been collated by Stockwell International’s Pricing Manager, Mathew Grundy. With his finger on the pulse each and every day, Mathew is able to provide a comprehensive breakdown for clients.
If you require any further information please do not hesitate to contact [email protected]
Ocean Freight Summary for August 2022
North-East Asia
Ocean freight rates from main China ports continue to steadily drop due to excess space in the market to AU ports. It is expected that demand for space will pick up as we enter peak-season at the start of September so importers are urged to make the most of lower freight rates before the pre-Christmas peak in the coming months.
Port congestion at both origin and destination ports continue to cause delays to almost all services as berthing wait-times are approx. 1-2 days at the main ports of Shanghai and Ningbo. Importers are advised to continue to factor in delays of at least 7 days when placing new orders for all shipments ex North-East Asia.
South-East Asia
Ocean Freight rates from South-East Asian have continued to plateau in recent months. Freight rates from this region have historically been cheaper than North-East Asia but due to a number of factors it is currently much more expensive to ship from Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, and India than it is to ship from China. Less carriers serve this market so demand is currently exceeding supply on most services. Vessels are booking out 2-3 weeks in advance of departure date with port congestion also causing problems and delays to a majority of services. India remains the most challenging market to find space for due to no direct services calling Indian ports.
Stockwell’s new booking office has been able to overcome space challenges from South-East Asia by utilising new online spot booking platforms which have been introduced to the Australian market in the last 6 months. This shift in the market has meant we have seen a number of clients switch terms of trade from CIF to Exworks / FOB, giving importers more control over their supply chains as a result.
Europe
Freight rates ex Europe on the shared MSC / CMA CGM direct service continue to remain at all-time highs for Q3 2022. Vessels are currently booking out 3-4 weeks in advance of the sailing date as demand for this weekly service to AU remains strong. Stockwell’s have noticed a large number of rollovers in the last fortnight from the ports of Hamburg, Rotterdam and Antwerp due to backlogs caused by overbookings of previous vessels.
Rollovers are expected to continue in the coming weeks which leaves the possibility for both carriers to impose a Peak Season Surcharge in the near future. Stockwell’s will notify clients immediately if either carrier announces a PSS in the coming weeks. Trans-shipment services with Hapag, OOCL and Cosco remain an option for importers but delays are currently 2-3 weeks at the trans-shipment port of Singapore need to be taken into consideration
USA
The USA market continues to be the worst affected region for vessel delays and rollovers caused by severe port congestion and space shortages. Berthing delays for vessels at main West-Coast ports continue to be the main source of delays with vessels being anchored off the coast, waiting to be unloaded / loaded, for 2 weeks or more at present. We have also seen multiple bookings be rolled for 4+ weeks in a row due to excessive backlogs, therefore, delays of 4-6 weeks need to be factored in for all orders ex USA ports until further notice.
