Shipping review in 2021: Ever Given stranded, California congestion, and soaring freight rates

This year has been a busy year for shipping , with the Ever Given, owned by Evergreen Marine, running aground in the Suez Canal, congestion at the ports of Los Angeles /Long Beach, and container ships queuing up at major ports .

This year is also the second consecutive year that the epidemic has stimulated import demand in the United States, hindered port operations in Asia, and brought unprecedented profits to liner operators and container ship owners .

Today we will review the major events that occurred in global shipping in 2021.

Ever Given runs aground in Suez Canal

On March 23, the Ever Given was stuck sideways while sailing in the Suez Canal , blocking traffic in both directions for six days , and more than 350 ships were forced to anchor and wait during peak hours . Shippers faced weeks of delays and were unable to deliver goods to Europe and the East Coast in a timely manner .

Los Angeles / Long Beach Port Gridlock

This year , the United States ' overall import volume has reached an all-time high. From ports to inland transportation, supply chain congestion has occurred frequently , and the Los Angeles /Long Beach ports , which handle 40% of the United States' imports , are at the "epicenter" of the congestion .

In January, more than 30 ships were anchored off Southern California, and by Feb. 1, 40 were. By April, the number had surpassed levels seen during the labor unrest of 2014-2015 .

Ships near Los Angeles /Long Beach

In late June, the number of waiting ships dropped to nine, giving hope that congestion could be resolved . However, this hope was quickly dashed as the peak season arrived. The number of waiting ships began to rise again , with the February 1 record surpassed in late August.

By the end of October, there were 80 container ships waiting, more than double the number in the first quarter . By early December, there were 96, and by mid-December, there were 102. As of last Saturday, 97 container ships were still waiting at sea.

The impact of the Ever Given grounding lasted for weeks , but the congestion at the Port of Los Angeles / Long Beach has lasted for nearly a year.

Container freight rates are rising rapidly

Port congestion caused by high demand has also led to an increase in freight rates . As freight rates rise, the demand for chartering is also increasing, which has also pushed charter rates to an all-time high.

According to shipping consultancy Drewry , freight rates from Asia to the U.S. West Coast have risen from $4,000 per FEU at the start of the year to more than $12,000 per FEU in mid-September.

Although the price has fallen since then, the fluctuation is not large and has generally stabilized. Now the price is gradually rising again.

Price per FEU , blue line = 2021, orange line = 2020, green line = 2019

The surge in freight rates has brought unprecedented profits to container shipping companies, with everyone from shipping giants like Maersk to small and medium-sized shipping companies like Zim getting a piece of the pie .

Drewry predicted in July that total liner shipping revenues would reach $100 billion this year . In October , it raised its forecast to $150 billion. This month, it raised its forecast again to $190 billion.

Shipping has been a concern for every cross-border seller in the past year. With the emergence of the Omicron variant, there may be more challenges waiting for sellers. I hope everyone can resolve the crisis and ensure safe revenue!

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