Below synopsis of the current import/export market situation in USA has been provided to us today from one of our service providers:
PORT UPDATE:
Los Angeles: Congestion at mid-level with dwell times averaging 0-2 days.
New York: Vessel waiting time is 0-1 days at PNCT and APM Terminal due to berth congestion.
Charleston: Vessel waiting time is 0-12 hours due to berth congestion.
RAIL UPDATE:
Los Angeles: Due to railcar shortages, limited rail allocations, and lack of rail crew, dwell times on the west coast have soared to an estimated 10-30days.
Chicago Chassis Shortage: Chassis deficits continue to be observed on a weekly basis in Chicago.
Chicago Rail Ramp Congestion – Due to congestion at destination ramps and accumulating backlog of cargo at origin ports, delays are to be expected in origin departure from long beach and Oakland for rail deliveries to Chicago.
East Coast: Chassis Shortages: Due to persistent congestion nationwide, chassis shortages continue to be observed resulting in potential delays for pick-up and delivery
| Branch | Truck power & Lead-time | Equipment availability & waiting time | Congestion |
| Los Angeles / Long Beach | 2-3 days turnaround at the terminals once container is made available. | Chassis shortages are still contributing to the existing issues with equipment. Dwell times significantly decreased. Trucker appointments available in limited number of slots for entry per day | Congestion has eased below pandemic levels. Vessel queue to enter terminals has dropped by 88%. |
| New York | (Import) pre-booking is preferred, but carriers have more capacity and can accommodate a week/few days out. (Export). Equipment and chassis availability has not been an issue for exports, congestion fees are still being applied. (1 week needed for pre-booking no longer applicable) | Equipment availability & waiting time looking stable. | Dwells are around 0-2 days. Empty returns readily available. |
| Chicago | EXPORTS: Required lead-time is 1 week out. Chassis availability is improving. IMPORTS: Truckers are advising an improvement 1 week lead time. |
Chassis Shortage in Chicago. | EXPORTS: Clear IMPORTS: Delays in Chicago are due to equipment still. Also heavily dependent on the rail and POD the containers are coming in from. |
| Charleston | Good availability. Booking 2-3 weeks in advance of ETA | Chassis availability: Normal | Operating normally Dwell time: 0-2 days |
We hope our Kiwi friends are not seriously affected by the arrival of this cyclone, they have already seen a lot of flooding and damage from recent exceptional rainfall in Auckland.