Spatial Global Newsletter Freight - Autumn 2021

GLOBAL NAVIGATOR Autumn 2021 PROFESSIONAL WORLDWIDE DELIVERY Freight www.spatialglobal.com The Reality of Brexit Mike Wallis Executive Chairman Mike Wallis is Executive Chairman of Spatial Global and has been a Main Board Director of parent company The Keswick Enterprises Group since 2005. As the UK unlocks and the new normal starts to take shape, this Autumn issue explores the key questions we’re being asked and highlights the areas we feel will help keep you informed during what is an unprecedented period in the history of Freight Forwarding.” We’re often asked what is making shipping rates so high and when will they stabilise? There are a broad variety of opinions as to why ocean shipping prices have spiralled and continue to remain so high but there are certainly some common factors that most analysts agree have contributed most significantly to the current climate. The Global Coronavirus pandemic most certainly has caused and continues to pose uncertainty and operational disruption across the Globe with Ports and Airports still periodically closing or limiting activities due to regional spikes in outbreaks. This of course then impacts on schedules through diversions and ultimately backlogs. If the containers cannot depart their origin point on time then it goes without saying they cannot then proceed to their ultimate destination, be offloaded and thus re-positioned as available units again. The situation adding to the ongoing shortage of equipment. Panic buying on a wholesale level as some experts have pointed out have also contributed to current market conditions with buyers placing orders in a race to secure space with a ‘just in case’ approach rather than a measured view to their own supply / demand requirement. Perhaps this also helps explain why warehousing space across all major commercial hubs have now too become extremely difficult to acquire. With this increased demand port operations have been adversely affected. Combined with periodic closures due to pandemic related incidences as mentioned previously and schedule disruptions, the sheer volume of containers arriving at any one moment through Key gateways have caused significant delay in turnaround times and on occasion cut and run situations. Then of course there’s the well publicised lack of haulage, which is explained through a shortage of heavy goods trained drivers but can too be attributed to the increased volume and congestion at ports and other inland terminals. A driver allocated to a load can spend several hours just waiting to pick up his container before even starting his onward journey to deliver. Extreme shipping rates continue to rule the freight industry, and this apparent instability is expected to stay well into 2022 and possibly into 2023 according to a number of trade related analysts. What influences the current excessive shipping rate volatility? In previous years the spread between the lowest and highest short term rates could be measured in the $100’s During 2021, so far the spread has ranged into the $1000’s The spread is unprecedented, and continues to be of great uncertainty in the market Global logistics giants jostle for top spot LIVERPOOLCITY REGION HUMBER FELIXSTOWE ANDHARWICH THAMES SOLENT /SOUTHAMPTON PLYMOUTH EASTMIDLANDSAIRPORT East Midlands apply for UK Freeport status Christmas freight deliveries warning The Freight Forwarding ‘Can Do People’ focused upon making you more competitive Robert Tedd Freight Manager Spatial Global