COVID outbreak

Cargo backlog ripples beyond Shanghai as lockdown stops trucks

Medical staff in white hazmat suits on the streets of Shanghai. A mass quarantine has made it very difficult for trucks to get through the city.

Rerouting freight to avoid the extended lockdown in Shanghai, where daily confirmed COVID cases topped a record 17,000 this week, is becoming more difficult and expensive as cargo facilities in other Chinese cities become overcrowded, logistics companies and carriers warn.

The logistics challenges for ocean and airfreight in Shanghai are extreme.

More than 90% of truck capacity is out of service. Trucks are prevented from moving in and out of the city without a special permit, which is only valid...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/cargo-backlog-ripples-beyond-shanghai-as-lockdown-stops-trucks

Shippers redirect Shanghai cargo to other airports amid mass quarantine

A China Cargo Airlines 747 jumbo freighter with a pink flower on the tail and a light blue color on a runway at a Chinese airport. COVID is hampering airport operations in China now.

Logistics companies are scrambling to find alternative gateways for customers’ international shipments as a two-stage lockdown through Tuesday to contain the spread of COVID in Shanghai cripples air cargo operations at the Pudong Airport.

The new measures causing serious shipping delays for imports and exports, as they are through seaports. Digging out from the pileup of freight once the mass quarantine expires is expected to create further challenges for airlines and shippers in the coming...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/shippers-redirect-shanghai-cargo-to-other-airports-amid-mass-quarantine

Air, ocean shipments delayed as Tianjin responds to COVID cases

Containers and cranes at a Chinese port.

Import and export operations in Tianjin are slowing after a small cluster of COVID cases was discovered over the weekend, according to third-party logistics provider C.H. Robinson. Meanwhile, in Shenzhen, authorities are blaming a contaminated import shipment infecting a cargo worker, who then spread the virus to three other people.

The news comes as China reinforces its zero-tolerance policy toward COVID in the weeks leading up to the Beijing Olympics that begin Feb. 4.

Authorities in the port...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/air-ocean-shipments-delayed-as-tianjin-responds-to-covid-cases

Hapag-Lloyd diverts vessel to Mexico after COVID outbreak

A large container vessel heads out to sea near beach on sunny day.

Container line Hapag-Lloyd said Monday that one of its vessels diverted to Ensenada, Mexico, to evacuate three crew members with COVID-19 to a hospital.

The German carrier said the MV Rome Express, a container ship with the capacity to carry 12,552 twenty-foot equivalent units that operates on its Transpacific East Coast loop, made an unexpected port call in Ensenada after five crew members contracted the virus.

The remaining two crew members are in quarantine on the ship, Hapag-Lloyd said. 

Hapag-...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/hapag-lloyd-diverts-vessel-to-mexico-after-covid-outbreak

Viewpoint: Politicians’ no-risk approach to COVID is itself risky

A blue computer generated image of a hand on a dial labeled "risk management."

Government officials and elected leaders have exhibited some of their best and worst instincts since the COVID-19 outbreak. Trying to safely steer a nation, or community, through the pandemic has been a daunting task that citizens should appreciate no matter their politics. There are no easy decisions when it comes to balancing public health and sustaining the economy.

As we approach the 20th anniversary of 9/11 this Saturday, I’m struck by one enduring parallel between dealing with terrorism...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/viewpoint-politicians-no-risk-approach-to-covid-is-itself-risky

Mazda shuts down plants as cargo flights from Shanghai dry up

A cargo facility at Shanghai Pudong Airport. with jets on the ramp.

Cargo operations continue to deteriorate at Shanghai Pudong International Airport after the detection of another COVID case, as a key terminal operator operates with a skeleton crew and freighter airlines cancel more flights, logistics industry professionals say. 

Many freight forwarders have stopped accepting bookings for Shanghai and are trying to divert flights under their contractual control to other airports, some of which have their own pandemic restrictions in place, adding to transit...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/mazda-shuts-down-plants-as-cargo-flights-from-shanghai-dry-up

Shanghai airport facility in COVID lockdown, cargo backlog expected

Planes parked at Shanghai Airport in a row.

Multiple logistics companies are reporting that authorities have suspended operations in a major warehouse at Shanghai Pudong International Airport because of a COVID outbreak, putting a halt to most freighter activity at China’s largest cargo airport. 

The timing of the closure throws another wrench in supply chains already stretched thin by ocean and airfreight capacity shortages and extensive shipping delays as the peak export season kicks into high gear for the holidays. All-cargo carriers...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/shanghai-airport-facility-in-covid-lockdown-cargo-backlog-expected

Retailers eye more air cargo as COVID lockdowns intensify in Vietnam

A Cargolux jumbo jet taxing at airport with Ho Chi Minh City apartments in background.

Big apparel and footwear merchants are increasingly trying to switch from ocean to air transport to make up for huge production slowdowns in Vietnam due to COVID and ensure seasonal imports arrive on time for holiday shoppers. Airfreight rates from the country are rapidly escalating because of the spike in demand for all-cargo charter capacity, according to logistics companies that manage freight movements.

The shift to cargo aircraft is underway as Vietnamese authorities, in response to rising...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/retailers-eye-more-air-cargo-as-covid-lockdowns-intensify-in-vietnam

Shipping disruptions contained as Ningbo port nears reopening

A big vessel tied up at the dock, view from the bow with ropes in the foreground.

Chinese authorities are expected to begin a phased reopening of a container terminal at the massive Port of Ningbo by the end of the week if no further COVID infections are detected. And the overall effects on ocean shipping so far have been less than originally feared, according to logistics and freight data providers monitoring the situation.

Last week’s closure of the Meishan Island Container Terminal after a worker tested positive for the virus put global supply chain managers on edge over a...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/shipping-disruptions-minimal-as-ningbo-port-nears-reopening

More supply chain delays as Ningbo port congestion worsens

A view from the back of a container vessel entering a port with tall cranes on the dock.

The closure of a critical container terminal at the Port of Ningbo in China because of a COVID infection is having swift ripple effects that are likely to spread worldwide, adding to shipping delays and stretching order lead times as companies try to stock shelves for the holiday shopping season.

As of 4 p.m. Friday, local time, 40 vessels were waiting at anchor for a berth outside Ningbo, and an additional 30 container ships were parked outside the Port of Shanghai, according to Kuehne +...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/more-supply-chain-delays-as-ningbo-port-congestion-worsens

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