Blank sailings, arrival delays, capacity contraction, schedule unreliability and resulting cargo roll-overs could drive container costs through the roof, maritime consultancy Drewry has warned.
According to an advisory there have been 468 blank sailings on east-west trades since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.
Such is the effect of only one out of every three vessels arriving within the first 24 hours of the expected time of arrival (ETA) that roll-over cargo spiked 83% for just one of its clients, head of Supply Chain Advisors and Drewry managing director Philip Damas has said.
Quoted by Sam Whelan of supply chain portal Loadstar, he said the one-third accuracy assessment had actually been conservatively calculated.
“To make matters worse, this is using a measurement which is fairly lenient, because we are setting the ETA at the time of the ship’s departure, by which stage the carriers should have a good indication of their schedules.”
In addition, said Damas, shippers and freight forwarders were forced to make amends at great expense and wastage of time as they scampered to secure sailings.
The problem was exacerbated, he emphasised, by lack of adequate and accurate information made available by lines.
It was Drewry’s view, he said, that rollovers were a key issue that had been exposed by the recent crisis. “This is the new reality of a much more concentrated marketplace in which shipping lines have more power.”