A return to normality for the global supply chain will bring huge relief to container shipping, but the next headache will be repatriating empty boxes particularly on the transpacific trade

Freight rates are expected to remain at record highs, as congestion problems that plagued 2021 continue. Schedule reliability will also likely repeat last year’s dismal performance, making ‘resilience and robustness’ essential to supply chain planning

The latest global schedule reliability data shows carriers arriving ‘on-time’ with around one in three vessels, as the seasonal decline in volumes had little impact on port punctuality

In this edition of Between the Lines, the focus is on North America as the primary driver of the current demand boom

SeaIntelligence sheds light on carriers’ recent upturn in profitability off the back of volume gains and sharp increases in average global freight rates. The analysts also look at the impact of high freight rates on low-value cargo shippers

SeaIntelligence’s regular Lloyd’s List column assesses the ongoing impact of the Suez Canal blockage and when carriers are likely to get a grip of the situation; it also looks at whether vessel size has an bearing on schedule reliability — a point raised following the Ever Given grounding