However, as the demand for Chinese goods is rising, anti-epidemic restrictions and manpower shortages in ports across the United States and Europe have delayed the return of containers to ports in East Asia. An exporter in Shaoxing, a coastal city in eastern China, said that the sharp increase in freight rates in December last year has caused many textile companies to close their doors.
So far, the shortage of containers has mainly affected routes departing from Asia, but there are signs that it has also begun to affect return routes, impacting Chinese importers. Ports are scrambling to find more containers to alleviate the shortage.
John Fauci, director of container equipment and leasing research at Drewry, a marine affairs research and consulting company, said that due to the soaring demand and the rising cost of raw materials such as steel, the price of new containers delivered this summer is currently about US$6,200, the highest level in history. He warned that this "may cause some companies to postpone ordering containers."
Although some reports from China indicate that activity at Chinese ports has improved in recent weeks, others in the shipping industry remain pessimistic about the prospects for the next few months. Luo Zhenlin, chairman of the Hong Kong Liner Association, said: “Almost every available ship in the world is now in use because there are too many ships docking (in the port) waiting for unloading.”
