Felixstowe Port continues to face increasing congestion issues as a result of high demand and capacity restrictions, which has gradually led to slower processing and longer turnaround times.

It is fair to say that congestion is an ongoing issue throughout Northern European ports, but Felixstowe seems to be the most challenging and carriers have been adjusting sailing schedules to avoid delays at the UK’s largest container port.

Port congestion has seemingly been the reason that selected carriers have adjusted their rotations to call at European ports before Felixstowe. We also understand that there are plans for some sailings to be diverted to either London Gateway or Southampton.

Now that we have seen the end of this year’s peak season, where Asia ocean freight volumes tend to drop significantly until after Chinese New Year, we are hopeful that this provides the respite needed for Felixstowe, and other European ports, to tackle the ongoing issues and pave the way for a return to normal operations.

In the meantime, we don’t expect any let up in the increasingly unreliable carrier schedules during the coming weeks. Numerous blanked sailings have been confirmed across the ocean freight alliances, as they continue to create artificial demand levels to assist in pushing up Asia ocean freight rates.