Maersk Market Update Latin America October 2023

30 October 2023

As part of our commitment to provide you with the most up-to-date and relevant information on the logistics industry, we share our Market Update on the Latin American market.

You will find information and interesting data on the update of the state of the ports, the most important transport routes and relevant news.

We hope you'll find the following information helpful, as well as inspiring to boost your business and keep your cargo moving.

Topic of the Month: 2024 Chinese New Year (The Year of the Dragon)

Every year, the logistics world prepares and anticipates for the arrival of the Chinese New Year, and it is that moment of the year when the supply chain stakeholders start planning and have everything ready for the cultural celebration in China. In this topic of the month, we will explore what is going to happen in the upcoming Chinese New Year.

What is the Chinese New Year? And When it’s going to happen?

The Chinese New Year (CNY) is a moment when the logistics world prepares for production and shipping “pause.” This 2024 CNY will start on February 10, 2024. It is also called the Lunar New Year or Spring Festival. Every year, the Chinese culture assigns one of the twelve animals of the Chinese zodiac, and 2024 is the year of the Dragon, a symbol of strength, authority, power, and good fortune.

China celebrates its new year, and the factories close for approximately three weeks so their workers can go and celebrate the holiday with their families. On the past years, more than 80 million workers traveled in 2015 to their hometowns. In 2023, after all the lockdowns of COVID-19, there were more than 226 million air, railway, road, and waterway passengers traveling in China, which means that the workforce is being paused for them to spend the festivity with their families.

As a result, the logistics world gets prepared and plans its operations around the CNT to minimize disruptions and maintain the smooth flow of goods and services.

What to expect in 2024?

The logistics industry had 2023 to stabilize in terms of COVID-19. Still, there will always be some other activities in the world that tend to stress the supply chain, so being prepared for the yearly events will help you navigate those that are unplanned.

In 2024, the logistics industry is expected to adapt and embrace technology, diversify transportation on the supply chain, redefine inventory management, and foster collaboration and partnerships. These proactive measures will help you and your business mitigate the disruptions caused by the CNY.

It is important to take into account that you understand what happens to your business and stakeholders during CNY. For example, the impact of China Exports from 2014 until September 2023 has increased by more than one hundred billion US dollars. It will be a game changer if you develop a plan and a partnership with your supplier or manufacturer, create a forecast that will get you through the festivity and beyond, plan your inventory beforehand, also think about the after Chinese new year.

The importance of planning ahead and how to avoid delays

Planning for the Chinese New Year is a crucial activity that logistics people must take into consideration to be stocked during those times to avoid disruptions or delays. Here are some key points to take into consideration while planning ahead.

Prepare Ahead: start early preparation by identifying the important dates and scheduling the timelines, productions, and shipment requirements.
Communication: It is key to communicate amongst all suppliers and stakeholders of your supply chain for them to be aware of your plans and be able to meet your needs.
Inventory: Plan and prepare your inventory management with essential goods and materials to ensure sufficient inventory during the pause period.
Alternative suppliers and manufacturers: identify and find diversity in your suppliers and manufacturers.
Advanced bookings: prepare and schedule your bookings to ensure space as well as diversify your ways of transporting your cargo.
Contingency plans: develop contingency plans and various scenarios, identify alternative routes, transportation modes, and suppliers for you to mitigate risks.

Planning proactively, diversifying transportation modes and suppliers, and maintaining clear communication and coordination, working with a logistic integrator can minimize the impact of CNY on your logistics supply chain operations, ensuring continuity, availability, and customer satisfaction.

Getting your supply chain ready for CNY 2024 is important for a seamless operation during this significant holiday period, and having the right partner who can provide the uniqueness that your business requires is a gamechanger. You can find out more on how Maersk can support on maximise your supply chain and logistics efficiency.

Ocean updates

Trade lane	Comments***
Trade lane West Coast North America Exports	Comments*** NEW Paita coverage, starting on Oct 12th we will be launching our new service from Paita, to Philadelphia. A service that will allow us to deliver Reeder products with direct service in 12-day transit time.
Trade lane North America to East Coast of South America	Comments*** The depth of the Manaus River continues to decrease, so we deployed two extra loaders to reduce the impact of the allocation reduction. Our service from the USEC is running smoothly. On the Gulf side, we are taking measures to improve the service reliability
Trade lane Intra-America to East Coast of South America	Comments*** We are taking measures to improve the service reliability in the UCLA service. In regards to Manaus, we are still monitoring the river situation on a daily basis. Besides, we are deploying extra loaders to reduce the impact on our customers' logistics
Trade lane Intra-America to Caribbean	Comments*** We would like to announce a weekly call to Puerto Cabello, Venezuela. We are adding a Puerto Cabello call to the rotation of La Guaira Feeder (U6C) effective October 17th, 2023, on the AS Angelina 342S vessel departing from Manzanillo, Panama. The new rotation of the La Guaira Feeder will be as follows: Manzanillo, PA – Cristobal, PA – Cartagena, CO – La Guaira, VE – Puerto Cabello, PA – Manzanillo, PA
Trade lane Central America to North America	Comments*** To cater to our customers' needs, we will be launching a 2nd sailing from Puerto Cortes on November 1st and Santo Tomas de Castilla on November 2nd to Port Everglades. Effective October 29th, the Bonita Express will have its last call in Mobile, Alabama. We will continue to serve this market via the UCLA service (UHD) to/from Mobile, Alabama as transhipment product.
Trade lane East Coast of South America to Intra-Americas	Comments*** Main space opportunities to Intra-ECSA (i.e., MERCOSUR trade). US East Coast and the West Coast of South America demand are strong during October. Mango and grapes reefer season is at peak season on the US East Coast. Regarding the US Gulf and Caribbean, demand is on the high side, and we are facing schedule disruptions during October/November. Nonetheless, new opportunities for all destinations are welcome in the last quarter of 2023/1st quarter of 2024.

*** This is general information of the Market

Landside updates

Central America, Andina and the Caribbean Sea Area

We can offer Intermodal Services for many countries across Central America, the Caribbean, and Andina. Additional to Intermodal Services we can also offer Value-added Services such as GPS, escort, armed escort, and more. Our Reefer services in the region are Cold Chain guarantee, so you can trust that your product is transported by experts who never forget the importance of the constant energy supply to the Reefer Container.

Air updates

Central America, Andina and the Caribbean Sea Area

Flower season in Colombia has started from end-September until end-October in which export rates will be increased, and space will be tight, impacting dry cargo mainly. Capacity is limited to Central America due to routing and aircraft changes. Import rates from Asia Pacific are increasing due to China's economic recovery, peak season start, and Mid-Autum Holidays.

West Coast South America

Cherries season in Chile starts from the end of October until mid-January, which will cause an export rates increase and capacity complexity, to attend to this demand, impacting dry cargo mainly. It is the same for Peru exports, with the berries season. Capacity is limited to West Coast South America aircrafts changes and Asia peak season, where many aircrafts can be re/routed. Imports rates are already increasing due the peak season and winter schedule in Europe.

Highlights

Maersk pilots heavy-duty electric truck solutions in Brazil

Supporting initiatives to decarbonise its customers supply chains in Latin America, A.P. Moller – Maersk (Maersk) conducted two pilots to provide electric truck capabilities to customers in Brazil. The pilots were done with heavy-duty tractor units, that would allow the transportation of containers (FCL).

Learn more from the global Maersk team

Learn what’s happening in our regions by reading our Market Updates by region.

Europe
North America
Asia Pacific

Be sure to visit our “Insights” pages where we explore the latest trends in supply chain digitization, sustainability, growth, resilience, and integrated logistics.

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