May 2022

Greater China

• The majority of Shanghai remains under varying levels of lockdown while further mass testing is carried out. Most of the general public are required to stay either at home or within small neighbourhoods, with the exception of industries providing basic livelihood necessities such as food, fuel, sanitation services, etc. Public transport remains suspended.

• Beijing is currently classed as ‘high-risk’ but is not currently under a citywide lockdown.

SEA

• Shanghai ports are operating with limited staff under a closed-loop management system, and there is a growing amount of import cargo which cannot yet be cleared.

• Some carriers have stopped accepting Shanghai import reefer and dangerous goods shipments.

• Port omissions to Shanghai and blank sailings are expected to continue to rise during this time.

• Ningbo port congestion is rising as cargo is redirected from Shanghai. Warehouses remain full while waiting times have risen to up to 7 days for container vessels.

• Jiangsu barge services are currently overloaded with cargo waiting to be moved.

• All terminals and local transportation in Hong Kong operating relatively normally, but subject to limited working hours or some staff working from home due to the pandemic situation. Rates and demand for vessel space decreasing in Q2 since mid-March.

AIR

• PEK, CAN, SZX, TAO, DLC, WUH, CGO, CTU, XMN, HGH airports are still operating, however there is a buildup of import cargo due to operational slowdowns and trucking restrictions under Covid-19 regulations.

• Shanghai Pudong International Airport (PVG) is open but operations are limited due to the lockdown and road restrictions, as well as cancelled flights, impacting both import and export.

• Air export resources currently include WNZ-MXP, CTU-MST, NKG-AMS-EU, CDU-MST-EU, CGO-CGN-EU, NKG-ORD, and other airports close to Shanghai to JFK and LAX. Cargo can also be delivered to other airports further afield in China for export elsewhere. For air import, WUH and HGH are close to Shanghai.

ROAD

• Trucking between cities and provinces requires a Covid-19 test to be conducted within the last 48 hours, and in some cases special licenses may need to be obtained in advance.
• In Shanghai, FTL trucks require green traffic permits to allow them to travel through roadblocks in Shanghai, meanwhile the LTL trucking situation is proving difficult to resolve.
• LTL trucking from Shenzhen to Hong Kong is still in operation, but FTL trucking to Hong Kong needs to be booked 2 days in advance. Trucking services between door and airport needs to be checked case-by-case, with cost increases subject to origin and destination.
• Jiangsu truck services are currently overloaded with cargo waiting to be moved.
• In Hong Kong, cross-border trucking limitations have currently been resolved via feeder service.

RAIL

• Multimodal solutions from China to Europe are available. Contact our team at CN.RC.RAIL@rohlig.com to find out more.

WAREHOUSE

• In Shanghai, our Waigaoqiao bonded warehouse will be under lockdown measures from May 10-15, and cannot accept cargo during this time. Import warehouses are prioritizing the shift of backlogs from March. Urgent cases must therefore apply to the customs office, and will be checked case-by-case. Operations at our general warehouses in Yangshan and Jiading remain suspended due to lockdown measures.
• Some suppliers are delaying their shipments from China-based factories into Hong Kong warehouses due to restricted movement between the two areas.

South Korea

SEA

• There was a temporary increase in allocation and drop in freight cost from Busan due to the lockdown in Shanghai. However, following the end of the Labour Day holidays in China, space from Korea has decreased significantly, which is expected to have an impact on logistics.

AIR

• Airfreight rates and fuel surcharges continue to increase.
• An increase in passengers for international flights is leading to more frequent offloading to make space for passenger baggage.

SEA

• Logistics and manufacturing personnel are returning to work following the long public holiday, with full import and export activities expected to fully resume by Week 20.
• Overall market space is open for various trade lanes due to low load factor from China.
• Container shortages are expected following recent low import volumes from China into Southeast Asian countries.
• Majority of countries in the region are easing Covid-19 restrictions.

Malaysia

WAREHOUSE

• Our Subang Jaya storage facility is expanding with an additional 1300 pallet positions by end of June 2022.

Vietnam

SEA

• Sea freight rates are slightly lowered, and the market remains competitive.

AIR

• International passenger flights are operational with more capacity available.

Thailand

• National holidays May 16th.

SEA

• Transpacific rates have fallen 5-7% since mid-March, with Asia-Europe rates also low when compared to the rest of the pandemic period.

AIR

• Volume in the market slightly lower than Q1.
• Airline capacity is improving but rates are yet to budge.

SEA

• All ports, CFS, ICDs are working as normal across the country.
• Sea Freight equipment is being released on the basis of forecasts received at least 4 weeks in advance.
• Shipping lines continue to apply blank sailings, and we will update customers in the event of any congestion.
• Congestion in Colombo is impacting trade in the South and East of the country.
• Import and export LCL is currently available at competitive rates.

AIR

• Some challenges for import, however export is running normally.
• The DGCA have allowed passenger flights to operate once again, however they have not extended passenger-to-cargo flights.