“Dockworkers are unloading ships as fast as they can, but the challenge is to move the containers out of the ports to make room for the next ship,” NRF Vice President for Supply Chain and Customs Policy Jonathan Gold said. “We need better empty return procedures and more chassis, truck drivers, rail capacity and warehouse workers to keep the system moving. Retailers have enough inventory on hand to make sure shoppers won’t go home empty-handed this holiday season. But there are still items sitting on the docks or waiting on ships that need to make it to store shelves and online sellers’ warehouses. Retailers want to make sure customers have product choices.”cargo industry,

More than 70 ships were reported waiting to dock at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach last week, and the wait at Los Angeles has averaged two weeks over the past month. Those delays, in turn, can push back the vessels’ arrival at other ports on their schedules. Some carriers have announced plans to divert to other locations, but congestion is building nationwide.

“The once-vaunted supply chain continues to come under pressure from all sides,” Hackett Associates Founder Ben Hackett said, citing issues ranging from port congestion in the United States to electrical shortages impacting production in China. “It does not look like the congestion will improve any time soon, with most commentators suggesting problems will continue well into 2022 – and that is assuming COVID-19 does not spike again.”

Congestion and disruptions that began in 2020 have continued through the current “peak season” for shipping when retailers normally stock up for the holidays, but many retailers anticipated the challenge and began bringing in holiday goods months ahead of schedule to be sure sufficient inventory would be available. NRF has forecast that holiday sales will grow between 8.5% and 10.5% over 2020.

U.S. ports covered by Global Port Tracker handled 2.14 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) in September, the latest month for which final numbers are available. That was down 5.9% from August but up 1.4% year over year.

Ports have not reported October numbers yet, but Global Port Tracker projected the month at 2.19 million TEU, down 1.2% from October 2020. The year-over-year decline would be the first since July 2020, after which unusually high import volumes began to arrive when stores closed by the pandemic reopened and retailers worked to meet pent-up consumer demand and to stock up for the holidays.

Even with the year-over-year decline, October would be among the five busiest months on record since NRF began tracking imports in 2002. Busy cargo is expected to continue through the end of the year, with November forecast at 2.17 million TEU, up 3.3% year-over-year, and December at 2.18 million TEU, up 3.5%.

January 2022 is forecast at 2.21 million TEU, up 7.6% from January 2021; February at 2 million TEU, up 7% year-over-year, and March at 2.17 million, down 4.1% year-over-year.

The first half of 2021 totaled 12.8 million TEU, up 35.6% from the same period last year. For the full year, 2021 is on track to total 26 million TEU, up 17.9% over 2020 and a new annual record topping last year’s 22 million TEU. Cargo imports during 2020 were up 1.9% over 2019 despite the pandemic.

Source: www.marinelink.com

Image: www.pexel.co

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The organisation has completed a year long transformation program which has created a forward-looking association well positioned to unite and represent all sectors of the supply chain, reflecting its broad membership composition.

“The industry has demonstrated over the last 12 months, how effective it can be when all the supply chain partners unite around a common objective, supporting the global community through the Covid pandemic.  Our industry came together initially by transporting PPE and other life essentials and then mobilized to provide the only effective transport mode to support global vaccine distribution” stated Glyn Hughes, TIACA director general.

TIACA has identified key industry priorities that will need to be embraced by the entire supply chain in order to modernize and continue to provide enhanced solutions addressing shipper and other customer demands.

The key challenges and call to action are;

•    Digitalization: Efficient and effective solutions require harnessing the power of data to modernize processes and provide transparent quality services. Great moves forward have been experienced during the past 12 months as the industry was forced to find new ways of working. We must now take this even further and we urge all parties to establish and implement digital transformation plans.

•    Sustainability: The air cargo industry must reflect the global society of which it serves.  We must collectively seek to focus on People, Planet and Prosperity.  In order to flourish in the years to come, we must create equal opportunities for all, embrace technology and innovation and ensure we implement environmental responsible solutions designed to protect the planet today and for generations to come.

•    Safety and Security: The protection of the supply chain and its employees as well as regulatory compliance are critical components of future industry success.  We call on Governments to ensure regulations are relevant and workable, aligned with the reshaped world and to work with industry in tackling counterfeit and non-compliant shipments. Government authorities must take appropriate action against those who seek to evade regulations.

•    Liberalization: Fair and liberal trade policies will ensure the continued growth of the global economy which relies heavily on effective global air cargo networks.  Supportive trade regulations, coupled with fair and liberalized air and ground regulations will ensure the industry can develop and grow aligned with market needs. We as an industry must come together to ensure our voice is heard to support trade policies that positively impact the global economy.

•    Partnerships and Collaboration: Success can only be achieved through effective collaboration between supply chain partners, supply chain customers and those who regulate the industry.  We as an industry must unite around a common vision for an efficient, effective, sustainable global supply network established through strong community relations.

“TIACA is committed to working with its members, the broader industry, association partners and government agencies to ensure we have a united and successful air cargo industry.  We have demonstrated considerable success over the past months but as we go forward new challenges will materialize.  We will need be more innovative, agile and focused as an industry to overcome them.” stated Steven Polmans, TIACA, Chair

The post TIACA calls for action on critical challenges appeared first on Global Cargo Insight.

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio from Pexels

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