Empty containers tell a story
I once visited a farm in Washington State not far from Seattle to see a remarkable sight. Bales of hay were being compacted and loaded into shipping containers to be sent to China. It illustrated that the US, the most advanced economy in the world, had so little to offer China, that containers were available to ship animal feed rather than shipping it in bulk. Which meant container shipping costs had fallen so much that it was economical to do so.
In fact, so imbalanced was the trade in goods, that for a time it was cheaper for China to make new containers than to ship them back from the USA empty and they just accumulated in huge piles around the West coast. Rising steel prices ended that practise, not soaring US exports.
I raise the subject because if you look at the problems surrounding British ports, something similar is happening. The covid crisis has brought in vast amounts of PPE, Christmas and stockpiling is bringing. in more and now the system is struggling to deal with thousands of empty containers. All this before new customs regulations come on line next month, which will increase costs and red tape enormously.
Logistics is supposed to be flexible and robust, but it is really feeling the strain and in danger of creating log jams at our ports.
https://jonty.substack.com/