American Airlines withdraws from Australia:
In a further blow to airfreight capacity into and out of Australia, American Airlines (AA) has announced it will withdraw all services to/from Australia effective from 1st September, 2021 for a period of at least 2 months.
It is understood the airline is reacting to Australia’s cap on passenger numbers after the Australian Government halved the arrivals to 3,000 passengers per week.
American advised they will deploy the aircraft used to the northern hemisphere where an upsurge in tourism had created “unprecedented” demand for wide bodied aircraft.
China Eastern also withdraws flight to Australia:
China Eastern Airlines (MU) have also advised they are withdrawing flights from China to Australia from this week, further adding to limited airfreight cargo capacity to/from China.
The suspension of flights is believed to be related to a COVID outbreak at Shanghai Airport.
Ningbo Port Re-opens:
After 2 weeks of closure, China’s Ningbo-Meishan Terminal has reopened and is again operating normally following a COVID outbreak at the port. Some 50 vessels are queueing at Ningbo port awaiting a berth, this along with recent typhoons on the China East Coast is delaying all sailings not only from Ningbo-Meishan terminal, but all ports on the China East Coast.
Heavy Congestion in USA continues:
All USA ports are heavily congested with hundreds of vessels at anchorage waiting on discharging and loading facilities to be available, inland rail-hubs and rail services are also over-burdened with the volume of containers moving across USA. The trucker shortage continues with a shortage of container trailers and truck drivers available to handle the volume.
All vessels to and from East and West Coast USA are heavily booked, with some lines postponing bookings to Australia due to the lack of space available.
Ocean Import and Export rates:
Rates continue to escalate on all trade lanes on a regular basis reaching heights none of thought were possible, the only winners in the current situation are the shipping lines, many announcing record profits over the past weeks, some with increased profits of 400% over last year.
The skyrocketing prices are also affecting LCL cargo with onsolidators announcing General Rate Increases and new surcharges almost on a weekly basis.