World trade and major export ports are going through one of the worst crises, following the recent prolonged closures of different key ports in the market, mainly in the Asian and North American zone, due to covid outbreaks, which have forced companies to strictly isolate their workers, close operations and leave loaded ships stopped. As a result, the cost of freight paid by those who purchase this transport service has quadrupled, according to Drewry's container index.
The increases are evident, because between last year and this one it is estimated that freight prices, for a 40-foot container, went from being, in July 2020 to US $ 2,000, to a value of US $ 10,000 in August of this year.
Among the ports that have had the most rising demand and ships caught by the closures, according to Bloomberg data, is Ningbo, one of the largest operating centers in Asia and which retains 141 ships of the 339 that have entered, maintaining a congestion of 59.2% in its operations (see graph). Another that presents greater numbers is that of Shenzhen in China, which has 41 ships waiting, of the 186 that have entered, registering 59% on dammed traffic.
In the United States the situation is no different, because in the port of Los Angeles - Long Beach there are 31 ships waiting to dock, of the 60 that have entered, with a dammed traffic of 52% of the entire operation. It is estimated that the total number of ships stopped in the 12 main ports, between Asia and the United States, is at least 312.
Logistics management is key to international trade.
The price of ocean freight suffocates Latin American trade.
A higher than expected demand and the slowdown in the logistics chain due to the new protocols, among other factors, have taken maritime transport rates to the sky. For shipping companies, which see their margins increase, the planets have aligned. But for the Latin American foreign trade industry it is a perfect storm, in which importers from Asia are being especially hurt, with increases of more than 100% in freight.
While the increase in the value of freight is a global phenomenon, there are regions where it is being more prominent than in others: including Latin America. In fact, according to UNCTAD data based on data from shipping market intelligence firm Clarkson Research Services, the SCFI index on routes from Shanghai to South America is the fastest growing in the last half year, followed by the index that measures freight from Asia to West Africa.
The situation is especially critical for Latin American importers who receive low-value products, such as textiles. And it is that companies such as importers of high-value products, such as electronics, and whose containers can load goods for US $ 200,000, can better dilute a freight increase of US $ 5,000 compared to importers of clothing from China, whose mechanics have a much lower value. "Since you have to pay suppliers, because orders are made much earlier, importers end up accepting the price and have to see at destination how they sell those products. It can be losing money or raising prices," says Astudillo, who explains that the current complication is such that it also affects large importers, such as retailers, who in theory can negotiate better rates for their large cargo needs.
"It is estimated that during the year 2021 freight costs in different countries have risen between 500% and 600%"
Overview of commercial logistics in Colombia.
A turning point has as its axis China, the main exporting power, from where there is more evidence of a shortage of containers to make international shipments. Colombia, like any other economy, has been affected.
This is since China, as of June, was the second most important trading partner in terms of imports with 23.8% of the total share. The United States was first with 24%.
"In the period January-June 2021, the countries of origin that contributed mainly to the increase in Colombian imports were: China (41.0%) and the United States (15.4%), with a joint contribution of 13.0 percentage points," recalls the Dane (National Administrative Department of Statistics of Colombia).
This phenomenon has led part of the operation to turn from the Pacific to the Caribbean, with particular emphasis on the coffee market that normally, in 70%, leaves through Buenaventura. The absence of containers has led to the external trade of coffee in Colombia migrated, in 55% of its operation, to the Caribbean, and represent almost 50% more than it is worth to ship coffee via the Pacific.
These effects on the supply chain come just at the critical moment within weeks of the start of the Christmas season, which, according to the WTO itself, is one of the highest annual peaks in world international trade.
Sources:
https://www.americaeconomia.com/negocios-industrias/la-fiebre-en-el-precio-de-los-fletes-maritimos-asfixia-al-comercio
https://www.larepublica.co/globoeconomia/crisis-maritima-en-puertos-de-china-y-eeuu-cuadruplico-los-precios-de-los-fletes-3224910
https://www.valoraanalitik.com/2021/08/31/escasez-contenedores-afecta-comercio-exterior-colombia/
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