Sixty-two percent of shoppers say delivery speeds influence their purchasing decisions, and 85% of online shoppers will go elsewhere if delivery speeds are too long. Consumers spent approximately $1 in every $4 on online orders.Ī key factor for keeping customers happy and loyal is on-time deliveries. In 2021, eCommerce accounted for roughly 21% of all holiday sales. imports continued to top records leading into December 2021, adding to an already volatile holiday shopping season.ĮCommerce shopping took center stage for consumers. Port congestion impacted brands and consumers through the end of 2021, with throughput rates declining again in November. Spot rates for dry-van tractor-trailers hit 12-month highs The buildup of containerized goods at Southern California ports created intense demand for outbound truck capacity. and Long Beach waiting for berths, a pre-pandemic rarity Through August, the Los Angeles-Long Beach port complex handled over 6.3 million TEUs of Asian imports, a 28.7% increase from the first eight months of 2020īy September, over 60 container ships were anchored off the ports of L.A. This created congestion throughout the supply chain, from delayed container ships to a shortage of port warehousing and truck transportation. The ports of Los Angeles-Long Beach, combined the largest container port in the U.S., saw accelerated imports after the initial Covid-19 lockdown in the U.S. Chartered boats cost nearly twice as much as major cargo liners and tend to be far smaller-not a viable option for cost-conscious retailers.Īsian ports weren’t the only ones impacted by cargo volatility and congestion. Some retailers, such as Walmart, Home Depot, Costco, Ikea, and Target, paid for chartered ships. Shippers had two options: Pay more or wait longer. Inventory delays and substantial cost increases for shippers accrued throughout 2021. Volatility across shipping modes had an ongoing impact. The Shanghai terminal is a primary loading node in China, handling more than 3.1 million tons of cargo annually. In August, the Meishan Terminal (Ningbo, China) and the Shanghai airport closed temporarily due to Covid-19, further disrupting air cargo operations. However, disruption lay in wait for this shipping mode as well. Air freight increased 23% in July 2021 versus 2020. Many shippers shifted to air cargo for critical goods. Yantian is the third busiest gateway in the world, and the port’s reduced throughput constrained an already-extremely tight ocean cargo market. And the impacts were significant.ĭwell loading times increased 122% during the initial two-week lockdown periodĭwell departure times increased 242% in the same periodīy one estimate, there were 300,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) awaiting export during the containment period In China, the Yantian International Container Terminal increased health and safety measures in June and July to slow the spread of Covid-19. The four-month lockdown mostly impacted furniture and apparel brands. Port workforces dropped by roughly 50% as the Covid-19 crisis accelerated in August and September. Vietnam initiated containment measures in May 2021, slowing shipping across modes. Covid-19 containment and safety measures across Asian ports and airports limited throughput and slowed shipments. Global ocean and air congestion increased throughout the spring and summer of 2021. Q1 - Q3 2021: Port congestion accelerated, threatening supply chains #įreight congestion continued capturing public attention after the Suez Canal incident. Nvidia projected fulfillment of 2021’s existing orders by the second half of 2022. Shortages and delays continued into 2022 for chip manufacturers due to a number of factors. Facility closure created multimillion-dollar losses for industries reliant on semiconductor chips, due to the global scale and complexity of electronics manufacturing. For example, Austin semiconductor plants, including Samsung Electronics, NXP, and Infineon, shut down manufacturing. Many felt its impact long after temperatures warmed, however. The storm itself was national news in the short term. FedEx and UPS issued warnings to customers and temporarily limited or suspended services across eight states Service stations remained idle, roads were untraversable, and load-to-truck ratios rose 29% week-over-week. National trucking capacity ground to a near halt. as Union Pacific shut down intermodal gates. Rail capacity slowed across the Southeast U.S. Grocery stores, traditionally operating on lean inventories, ran low on supplies, and the storm delayed cross-border shipments. in February 2021, it disrupted local, regional, and national supply chains. When a winter storm broke over Texas and the Southeast U.S. Supply chain leaders are no strangers to inclement weather, but 2021 was full of surprises.
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