Skuldelev, Denmark: Chinese New Year is fast approaching, and it will have a significant impact on the global freight market, warns DSV. The Chinese New Year, one of the most significant annual Chinese celebrations, falls on 10 February 2024, and runs for 15 days until 26 February.
The celebrations involve a seven-day public holiday held between 10 February and 17 February. On any given year, the Chinese New Year affects capacity to and from China and, the Far East, in general. The usual consequences of this include long transit times, flight cancellations and void sailing programs.
This year will be even more challenging as the continued crisis in the Red Sea will begin to spill over into operational issues in China in the coming weeks. “If you are not already considering this impact in your business planning, now is the time to do so,” DSV says. This year, several extraordinary factors cause a great deal of uncertainty.
“We expect to see an exceptional demand for transport of goods in a market that is characterised by limited capacity in terms of vessel space, as well as an acute lack of available equipment in the required geographical locations,” DSV says.
The effect on transit times is increasing exponentially: Ocean Alliance operates a weekly service between North Europe and China, with a transit time of approximately 38 days from Rotterdam to Shanghai in China. That transit has increased to 53 days. The empty containers due to discharge mid-January will now arrive too late so; we anticipate a late surge of shippers trying to source and stuff containers to meet with already stretched capacity, DSV says.
“We anticipate that the equipment shortage will impact Chinese export volumes in their entirety and, as a result, pressure on rates will be felt across all modes and trade corridors including (but not limited to) US, Australia, South America, and Europe. As a consequence of the above, the increase in rates for Air and Sea transport is expected to continue and we will likely see the introduction of further Peak Season and Contingency surcharges in the coming weeks,” DSV says.
