Port congestion is up across all regions of the world, with high volumes reported in North America, Asia, Europe and the Middle East.

“There has been no improvement globally in the past year and looking forward our review is that you should [not] expect an unwinding and resolving of port congestion… until the first half of 2023,” said Philip Damas, managing director of Drewry Shipping Consultants at this year’s Automotive Logistics and Supply Chain Europe conference.

That scenario depends on a slowdown in demand and a more disciplined deployment of additional ship capacity by the carriers. However, there still remain uncertainties relating to fuel prices, economic recession and the war in Ukraine, amongst others. 

Focusing in on the current situation in container shipping between China and the US, Damas said the average transit times for loading and unloading between China and both coasts of the US was in a dismal and unpredictable state, with huge variability, something causing headaches for supply chain planners.