Delays with seafreight from Europe

Prior to the blocking of the Suez Canal by the Ever Given, seafreight from Europe was quite difficult with s pace and equipment delays from just about every port.

Since the blockage and reopening of the Suez Canal this has only been exacerbated as the cargo vessels delayed in the canal for over a week have meant there is a further contraction of space. We are seeing de lays in obtaining bookings in Europe for up to 4 weeks and consistent changes in schedules and port rotat ions which make the shipping quite unpredictable.

Please continue to book early and allow time in your bookings for delays. It will be quite rare to be able to o btain a booking this week and move the goods the week after, irrespective of the rate.

On a side note, it has been reported, the Ever Given has been held in Egypt subject to paying the costs of t he refloating of the vessel. The estimates are upwards of $900 million that the Egyptian port authorities are requiring the owners to pay. All the while the freight sits on the vessel and waits.

Airfreight terminals jump on the bandwagon

As we have spoken about many times the seafreight costs increases have been substantial over the past 2-3 years and show no signs of abating. The airfeight terminal operators however have been very quiet until now.

The terminal handling at all three major operators is increasing and we will need to pass these increases t hrough. Even though there is not a lot of airfreight moving and the freight costs are extremely high, there w ill be no let up on the terminal increase locally.

VoxGroup are continuing to negotiate with the terminals and our partners to determine the most appropriat e airlines and therefore terminals to get the best deals possible.

Please stay in contact with our staff and we will assist in guiding you to the best possible outcomes. Take care and stay safe.