Global Shipping Mess To Last Until 2023, Industry Insider Predicts
Global Shipping Mess To Last Until 2023, Industry Insider Predicts
By Mark Saunokonoko • Senior Journalist Sep 21, 2021
Australian shoppers eyeing certain Christmas presents have already missed their chance to get them under the tree, a freight expert has cautioned, because of the global shipping crisis and an unprecedented, punishing backlog at ports.
Supply chain delays and soaring consumer demand have led to shipping containers backing up at Australian and global ports, meaning inordinately long wait times for consumers and making it much more expensive for companies to ship their goods.
That cost trickle-down will hit a variety of products, including food, furniture and clothing, Jackson Meyer, chief executive of Victorian-based freight forwarding firm Verus Global, said.
Months and months of shipping disruptions resulting in part from pandemic-triggered overseas factory shutdowns, port congestion and shipping container and labour shortages have caused delays for products ranging from laptops to sofa sets. (Getty)
Over the coming months, prices on some goods could move "substantially" because of the shipping gridlock, which was now so dire that Mr Meyer predicted it would likely last until early 2023.
The problems began when the coronavirus pandemic first hit China in 2020, and worsened when the giant container ship, Ever Given, blocked the Suez Canal in Egypt for nearly a week earlier this year.
"There's a massive backlog already and there's a huge demand continuing to rise. This is a huge issue," Mr Meyer said.
Months and months of shipping disruptions resulting in part from pandemic-triggered overseas factory shutdowns, port congestion and shipping container and labour shortages have caused delays for all kinds of products.
A series of important forthcoming national holidays and festivals in China will only serve to deepen the crisis, Mr Meyer said.
More than 80 per cent of global trade by volume is moved by sea, and the disruptions are adding billions of dollars to supply chain costs.
Some retailers were being "hammered" by the spiralling cost of shipping, he said, and those spikes would inevitably be passed on to consumers.
Mr Meyer said some of his clients had simply stopped shipping altogether.
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