The main reason for the increase in freight rates

The main reason for the increase in freight rates is the decrease in the efficiency of ships and the reduction of container turnover.

After the outbreak of Covid-19 in 2020, domestic and foreign ports began to implement strict inspection and control to prevent overseas imports of the epidemic. Therefore, cargo ships arriving at the port need to line up to enter the port, resulting in serious port congestion, low ship turnover, and container ship capacity. The shortage of space is tight; coupled with the low resumption rate of foreign terminals, the time for loading and unloading has increased, and the efficiency of port loading and unloading has decreased. According to Seaexplorer data, as of August 17, 2021, as many ports on all continents are facing operational interruptions, there are currently more than 346 ships of major international ocean carriers berthed outside the ports.

In general, the decline in my country's container production in the past two years may be one of the reasons for the soaring shipping prices. However, the main reason is that due to the control of the epidemic, the rate of ship pressure in ports and the turnover rate of containers has greatly decreased. According to the China Container Industry Association, the global epidemic has caused serious overseas empty containers to be stranded, reducing the efficiency of container turnover. At present, only one container can be returned for every three exported containers, and a large number of empty containers are backlogged in the United States, Europe, and Oceania, which affects the efficiency of container turnover. From the demand side, multiple factors such as the recovery of global trade and inflation caused by the release of the US currency have pushed up shipping prices and other factors that have jointly promoted the rise of container freight rates.