The delays are being caused by staff shortages and low water levels in the waterways, while the impact of the new round of shipments triggered by the pause in China-US tariffs is unclear
Jansen : The situation of Red sea will remain the same for a long time since there are no safety conditions to reactivate transits along the Suez Canal
Ports across Northern Europe are grappling with rising congestion, causing widespread delays and operational disruption.
Other causes of congestion
A confluence of industrial action, infrastructure strain, inland transport bottlenecks and the rollout of new shipping alliances is overwhelming terminals, with no immediate relief in sight also low water levels in the Rhine (which create difficulties for barge transport to and from Antwerp and Rotterdam) are cited as causes of the growing congestion observed in the main port hubs of Northern Europe, which are added to the effects of the temporary revocation of China-US tariffs announced by Trump, which has pushed many companies into a new round of frontloading.
According to an analysis by Drewry
According to an analysis by Drewry published on May 23, in Antwerp ships wait an average of 44 hours before being able to dock (from 32 the previous week, +37%), while in Hamburg the times have increased by 49% and in Bremerhaven by 77% in the same period. However, the ports of Shenzhen (where there are 50 ships waiting), Los Angeles (42 units) and New York (14) are also affected by this criticality, while carriers are already introducing dedicated surcharges, motivated by the greater congestion to which the ships are subjected.
Container volumes
Container volumes have surged at key gateways such as Antwerp-Bruges, Bremerhaven, Rotterdam, and Felixstowe, with waiting times and yard occupancy levels climbing.Antwerp is experiencing yard utilisation at 96%, with reefer plugs over capacity at 112%.
Nearly half the vessels arriving are waiting for berths
Nearly half the vessels arriving are waiting for berths, and 52 more containerships are en route. Berthing delays are being exacerbated by residual backlogs following strikes at the end of March, and the port has reduced its export delivery window to five days to help ease pressure.
Bremerhaven is seeing similar strain
In Germany, Bremerhaven is seeing similar strain, with nearly 30% of vessels waiting for berths and inland rail disruptions further complicating the situation. Landslides and line closures near Hannover forced lengthy rail detours, impacting traffic to and from major ports including Hamburg, Rotterdam and Duisburg. These rail delays are causing a cascading effect across Northern Europe’s inland logistics.The UK is not immune. Felixstowe, London Gateway, and Southampton are all dealing with congestion as vessel diversions from continental ports push volumes higher.
According to Vizion and Dun & Bradstreet
According to Vizion and Dun & Bradstreet, in the week of May 12, bookings for sea shipments of containers from China to the United States doubled to about 2.2 million 20-foot containers, but dropped to 1.4 million containers in the following week. In short, the trend of bookings remains uncertain, while one thing is certain: with the return of demand, freight rates are increasing in value.
Rolf Habben Jansen : Signs of improvement
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On the subject, Bloomberg reports, Hapag Lloyd’s top manager Rolf Habben Jansen said in a webinar that he currently sees signs of improvement, but believes that it will be necessary to wait six to eight weeks for the situation to get back under control.
At a global level, the situation is made even more unstable by Trump’s announcement that he wants to introduce new 50% duties on EU exports to the US from 1 June (a date later postponed by the US president himself to 9 July). According to Oxford Economics, uncertainty on this point will weigh especially on Germany, Ireland, Italy, Belgium and the Netherlands. According to Bloomberg Economics, any 50% imposition would bring EU exports to the United States to “almost zero” for all products subject to reciprocal duties, thus reducing total EU exports to the United States by more than half.
Finally, no relief will come from the Red Sea, which container ships are continuing to avoid. According to Jansen, the situation on this front will remain the same for a long time since there are no safety conditions to reactivate transits along the Suez Canal, but even if it is restored, this will necessarily have to happen gradually to avoid creating new port congestion in Western ports.
Related : Drewry : Europe’s freight bills to go up as younger fleet trades
Sources : Agencies
