Ports struggle with flooring imports
December 9, 2020
Flooring imports are being delayed by up to three weeks and costs are rising as congestion at UK container ports continues to grow.
Analysts say a third of all containers are delayed by up to three weeks as ports are full and containers are in short supply. The pandemic, pre-Christmas trading and pre-Brexit stockpiling are being blamed for the issue.
Imports from China, Turkey and the Far East have been particularly hit, regions that have seen import growth in flooring and furnishing goods during the second half of 2020.
In some cases, shipping costs of $8,000 per 40ft container have been quoted from Asia to the UK, up from around $1,600 at the end of September,
The UK's largest container port at Felixstowe is full and inbound vessels are being diverted to Rotterdam. "At the moment, the port has become a bottleneck because other elements of the supply chain have got out of balance," said Eleanor Hadland, a ports analyst at the maritime consultancy Drewry.
She said getting a berthing slot at Felixstowe "is like trying to get a Tesco delivery in the beginning of lockdown".
"Partly that's because of Covid, partly Brexit preparation and a lot of external factors which have resulted in ports reporting congestion. But Felixstowe could have dealt better with these external challenges," she said.
She said getting a berthing slot at Felixstowe "is like trying to get a Tesco delivery in the beginning of lockdown".
"Partly that's because of Covid, partly Brexit preparation and a lot of external factors which have resulted in ports reporting congestion. But Felixstowe could have dealt better with these external challenges," she said.
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