So much for a peaceful pre-Christmas period. Though in the past few weeks it seemed as if the logistics sector was starting to relax a bit after months of chaos, it is now becoming apparent that it was erroneous to even think of relaxation. All over the world, things are going haywire in terms of ships, ports, freight volumes and containers.

Take Rotterdam and Antwerp, for example: the infrastructure in the two ports still cannot keep up with the unloading and reloading of freighters. There is still a clear lack of staff and space for stacking the containers. Because the EU is running out of lorry drivers, there is a shortage of truck capacity in domestic logistics. If the old containers have not been removed, new ones cannot be placed.

As a result, port facilities are clogged and overflowing, and at sea, container giants often have to lay at anchor for weeks, waiting for their turn to proceed towards the port, and finally enter it. In the meantime, freighters’ congestion has grown to absurd lengths. One ship is bobbing next to the other – scenes that were previously known to emerge only at bays off Shanghai and Los Angeles.

The situation is particularly drastic for tankers transporting chemicals. Actually, these freighters are supposed to tour non-stop and criss-cross Europe to supply chemical factories with urgently needed precursors. However, not only the sea ports but also inland ports are reaching their capacity limits at many places, and are having to send tankers into a forced break – with as-yet-unforeseeable devastating consequences for the whole national economy.

The real bad news, however, comes from the Far East: the central government in Beijing is once again closing entire ports in China, in order to cope with coronavirus outbreaks that are flaring up time and again. The communist regime does not seem to care that it is holding the entire global supply chain logistics hostage with the blind rigour of these measures.

This does not bode well for German processors, who are desperately waiting for the ordered load of plastic granulate. No containers, no primary products, no production, no payment, no liquidity – how long can companies keep this up?

Finally, a look at container freight rates: From China to North America, rates have risen slightly for the US West Coast by 1% to now USD 14,700 (EUR 12,890), for the East Coast by 3% to USD 17,480. The passage from the Middle Kingdom to Northern Europe also costs 1% more in calendar week 50 for a 40-foot container (FEU): USD 14,500. Vice versa, it has become 6% cheaper – the FEU is being transported for USD 1,495. The route from Northern Europe to North American East Coast is available for 3% less than in the previous week (USD 7,250 or the equivalent of EUR 6,315), and the return price slumped by 12%: a steel box now costs only USD 545.