Spanish ports can’t handle the load, how long will sea freight work?

Many companies store part of their orders in port warehouses until they sell the products. Because of this, warehouse capacities are slowly filling up. (Photo: Pixabay)

Since several Chinese manufacturing and trading companies have established centers in Europe, the volume of sea freight from China to the continent has slightly decreased. Currently, the cargo traffic has decreased the most in the ports of Genoa, while more and more ships are targeting Rotterdam. This is not surprising, since a 40-foot container from Shanghai can be delivered to the latter port for more than $1,000 cheaper. According to the World Container Index, container shipping rates have been on a long-term decline: on July 21, a 40-foot container was $6,820, down 2.6% from the previous week and now 24% cheaper than a year earlier. However, when compared to the pre-pandemic average price of $3,554, this is still very high. – can be read on the website of the FruitVeB Hungarian Fruit and Vegetable Association and Product Council.

Spain’s ports are slowly filling up

In Spanish ports, on the other hand, there is a drop in prices and a temporary increase in traffic, but the larger volume of goods has interesting consequences. In the largest port, for example, in Valencia, which currently operates at 85% utilization and supplies 50 trucks per hour, the capacities of the port warehouses are approaching saturation. Because of the large volume of incoming goods and the declining European demand, only those goods that are needed in land warehouses and logistics centers are delivered, the other containers remain in the ports. In Spain, the port of Valencia is estimated to reach 9 million TEU (twenty-foot equivalent unit) cargo traffic by the end of the year, which was only 5.6 million TEU in 2021. Among the Spanish ports, Algeciras (4.8 million TEU) and Barcelona (3.5 million TEU) are on the second and third rungs of the imaginary podium.

Fruitweb