Evergreen's giant cargo ship "Ever Given" ran aground and blocked the Suez Canal last Tuesday (23rd) and finally managed to escape. The lack of containers and ships has already plunged maritime transportation into a crisis. It is estimated that it will take several days for the Suez Canal to resume normal navigation. In fact, since the epidemic, the international shipping market has been extremely stressed. Exporters from all over the world are facing problems such as shortage of containers and soaring freight rates.

The 193-kilometer Suez Canal (Suez Canal) is the world’s most frequent shipping seaway. Freight passing through this area accounts for 12% of global trade. Another 8% Every day, millions of barrels of oil are exported to all parts of the world through the Suez Canal. Since this is the fastest route for Eurasian shipping, it is the throat of Eurasian freight, and it is also very important for exporting countries such as China and Asia.

In addition to the long Chinese Lunar New Year holiday in February, it is currently at the peak of shipments after the resumption of work by mainland manufacturers, making all types of transportation demand particularly strong. However, if the westbound ship detours to Europe by the Cape of Good Hope, the voyage may take an extra week, and the cost is a consideration for shipping companies and importers and exporters.

In fact, the situation of tight transportation and rising freight rates has intensified since the middle of last year. The outbreak of the new crown epidemic has paralysed air transportation. Even though many passenger flights have been converted into cargo flights, the total cargo capacity is still difficult to compare with the previous passenger and cargo flights. In addition, the "home economy" has increased the demand for freight, and the burden of transportation has been reduced. Above the maritime industry. In the first half of 2020, various countries implemented city lockdown measures, land transportation was disrupted, ships and crews needed to be quarantined, ports and freight were shut down, resulting in container stranded, and no return to major Asian producing countries, resulting in tight container supply. Over the past few months, global ocean freight rates have repeatedly hit new highs.