As many as 28 million TEUs arrive late annually impacting shipper bottomlines, according to the European Shippers' Council's (ESC) maritime transport division, according to Exim News Service.
It said the problem is an "enormous cost burden" for shippers and consignees alike, made worse by the lack of communication with ocean carriers and exchange of real-time data.
An ESC representative told an audience at the fifth annual Med Freight Conference in Istanbul that one in five containers arrive late despite an industry boast that schedule reliability has improved.
Slow steaming to reduce costs has increased transits from Asia to Europe by four to five days, resulting in further supply chain costs in extra inventory, he added.
Surplus capacity and lower traffic levels have meant that the usual level of complaints of missed connections on transhipment services has been less, he said, but added that many of its members would be prepared to pay more in freight rates for faster transit. |
