Although the lockdowns in China are putting even more pressure on the logistics chain for imports and exports, they are not immediately causing huge problems. That is what sector organizations for entrepreneurs and transport say after a call to the ANP.
The logistics chain was already suffering from disruptions due to the corona pandemic; the war in Ukraine was added to this, and now also the new lockdowns in China. Shanghai, among others, with the world’s largest container port, has been in lockdown for weeks due to corona infections.
An interest group of forwarders Fenex says that “the entire market is on the drip”. “The closure of the city of Shanghai does not help,” said chairman Ad Schoenmakers. According to him, the idea was that the market would stabilize at the end of this year, but that has now been postponed to the end of next year. “In this way, we extend the horizon further and further. Every day, it hurts somewhere in the chain. The problem continues to rage.”
Sometimes “crowded” boats pass Shanghai. According to Schoenmakers, this causes further disruptions such as longer delivery times. “We will all get it done, but not within the normal time frame.” For example, the transit time for a container was about 30 days. That is now between 60 and 80 days. This causes problems for the long-term planning of importers and exporters.
Industry organization Transport and Logistics Netherlands (TLN) says the lockdowns in China are “to a significant extent”, ensuring a “continuation of the situation that was already there” due to disruptions caused by the pandemic, a spokesperson said. In addition, the “virtually shutting down” of Shanghai is also causing problems for surrounding ports. TLN expects the shutdown of Chinese factories to have an effect on the supply from China to the Netherlands but says it has not yet received any specific signals.
Entrepreneurial advocacy club evofenedex says it has not noticed many of the lockdowns in China yet. “On the one hand, Chinese ports are partially functioning. On the other hand, many companies have built up considerable stocks so that they are not immediately susceptible to logistical disruptions,” said a spokesman. However, exports to China may take longer as goods may need to be moved to other ports. In addition, if the lockdowns last for a long time, there may eventually be a shortage of products. This could, for example, apply to consumer goods such as electronics, clothing and garden furniture.