2023 peak season set to be subdued

Reports suggesting that the container shipping market is stabilising are making interesting reading for the staff at Davies Turner that manage our comprehensive network of international container shipping services, including LCL and FCL import and export operations, but we agree that there are very few signs of a significant rally, as supply chain trends return to some semblance of new normal following the dramatic two-year, pandemic-driven surge in imports and consumer demand.

Across the Atlantic, a trade lane in which Davies Turner has a strong presence, total US imports hit nearly 2.1 million teu in May, according to data from PIERS, a sister company of the Journal of Commerce within S&P Global. Although that was the highest total monthly import volume this year, it was still down more than 20% from the same month in 2022, continuing a streak of year-over-year double-digit declines that started last November.

As certain trade lanes enter their busiest quarter of the year, the question now is whether this period is a correction that will lead to increased stability, or whether further receding will occur.

For now, the peak season is shaping up to be dull — a recent CNBC survey revealed that retailers expect a weak holiday season, marked by heavy discounting, an indication that holiday-related imports could be week through the summer-fall peak season.

What does this mean for shippers, carriers, and forwarders and the prospect for accessorial charges? Will carriers be forced to lay up capacity, leading to more blank sailings in the Autumn?

That is certainly a question exercising the minds of Davies Turner staff working in our ocean freight departments. Why not give them a call to discuss their opinions and find out more about our comprehensive ocean freight services, or just visit the relevant pages of this website or send an email to ocean@daviesturner.co.uk