Suez Canal is blocked again! Cainiao and AliExpress jointly launch merchant subsidies

In two weeks, the Suez Canal, the "main artery of Eurasia", has experienced two ship jams. On April 6, the oil tanker Rumford was blocked for about two hours due to engine failure, just three days after the Ever Given cargo ship successfully escaped from the canal and resumed navigation .

During the first blockage, more than 400 ships were waiting to pass through , causing an estimated loss of $9.6 billion per day. Ship deliveries have been delayed by six days, and taking other routes will take about 10 more days. Some analysts said the "aftermath" of the canal blockage may continue until June this year.

To this end, Cainiao and Alibaba AliExpress jointly launched subsidies for merchants' European overseas warehouses and first-leg delivery, and helped merchants overcome difficulties together . This subsidy mainly consists of two parts: merchants with European compliant VAT can enjoy warehousing subsidies when preparing goods to Cainiao's European overseas warehouses; at the same time, if merchants use Cainiao's official first-leg delivery, they can also enjoy corresponding subsidies.

Shipping delays will not only extend the time it takes for goods to arrive at the port and enter the warehouse, but will also affect the overall sales plan and capital turnover of merchants. At the same time, as container resources are still scarce recently , if the stranded ships are tied up with empty containers and continue to be delayed, it will further affect the import and export situation of some countries. A consulting company said that two-thirds of container ships are already late .

It is reported that container ships account for about one-third of the total transportation volume of the Suez Canal . In addition to energy materials such as oil and liquefied natural gas, these containers also carry a large number of Chinese export goods, especially those exported to Europe. These goods are either directly sold to consumers in European countries through cross-border platforms such as AliExpress and International Station, or enter the European market through bulk trade. For large items such as furniture and fitness equipment , merchants usually use sea transportation for cost considerations, while for goods such as 3C digital products, beauty and clothing, merchants will choose sea transportation to reduce operating costs when preparing goods in overseas warehouses on a large scale.

Some experts estimate that the chain reaction caused by the canal congestion may even last for months, including delays in cargo transportation, delays in the entry of goods into ports and warehousing, and even potential increases in shipping costs. Due to the scarcity of ship and container resources, merchants may resort to bidding to ensure delivery timeliness, which may also cause price increases and market instability.

"It is expected that in the short term, merchants will turn more to air and rail transportation for replenishment of overseas warehouses in Europe . In terms of transportation to Europe, Cainiao has also made corresponding plans for air and rail transportation and continues to advance them. For example, we have built an eHub at Liege Airport in Belgium, and the YiXinXinEurope train and the Zhengzhou-Europe train." Xiong Wei, assistant to the president of Cainiao Network and general manager of the export logistics division of AliExpress , said that one of the reasons why Cainiao has a full-link layout covering "sea, land and air" is to provide merchants with optional logistics methods to help them reduce the potential risks brought by a single form of logistics.

Currently, Cainiao has more than 200 cargo flights per month , has built a supply chain network in 33 countries, and has deployed global hubs in Hangzhou, China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Belgium, Thailand, Indonesia and other places to achieve the goal of "global delivery within 72 hours" . In 2020, Cainiao's global parcel network has processed more than 4 million cross -border parcels per day .

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