Shippers across the globe must be ready to pay more as freight charges as A. P. Moller-Maersk Group, owners of Maersk Line, said it will impose an additional surcharge on import containers following the increased impact of the Red Sea situation on the global supply chain.
According to a customer advisory notice issued by the Danish shipping firm that was sighted by BusinessDay, the complexity of the situation in the Red Sea and the ripple effects on global supply chains have intensified in recent months.
It said the Red Sea situation has caused industry-wide disruptions and there are expectations that these disruptions will continue into the third quarter of 2024.
Maersk said the supply chain has continued to face additional challenges and costs despite hopes that the situation would improve.
“These include, but are not limited to, the costs of the longer journeys and increased sailing speed to make up for delays. This has led to additional fuel costs.
“At the same time, operational bottlenecks have absorbed and reduced available capacity, leading to higher charter rates. We are doing what we can to add further capacity to our routes, in line with our customers’ needs,” the shipping line said.
Read also: Shippers’ Council moves to ease clearing of trapped export containers at port
So far, Maersk said, it has leased more than 125,000 additional containers, increased its sailing speed, and organised its fleet to enhance capacity where possible.
“To help with the additional costs, some surcharges will increase temporarily. You will see relevant surcharges on your latest invoices, some higher than last month.
“We will continue to review the surcharges regularly and keep you updated on changes. You can also find the latest information on our dedicated surcharges page on Maersk.com,” the customer advisory stated.
The global container ocean freight charges are surging to levels not seen since the pandemic supply chain crunch.
In some key trade lanes, the freight rate is up 140 percent since mid-December and still increasing by the week.
The surge in freight charges started last December when terrorist attacks in the Red Sea forced container ships to divert around Africa, reducing shipping capacity and elongating travel time.
As a result, it now takes 30-40 percent longer to complete the round trip from Asia to Europe, lowering the network’s effective throughput.
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