THE global shipping industry is experiencing the worst conditions in the history of container freight, the boss of a logistics business has warned.

Rob Lewis, operations director of Southampton-based Meachers Global Logistics, said a “perfect storm” meant some ships were running four weeks behind schedule.

The pandemic led to national lockdowns in many countries, causing shipping companies to reduce the number of cargo vessels being sent out. Mr Leiws said many containers were left uncollected on docks.

However, when people in the west began spending on physical goods rather than going out, the supply chain could not cope with the sudden boom in business.

Mr Lewis said: “The impact of Covid-19 on port and shipping operations along with the shortage of transport has led to the worst market conditions in the history of containerisation.

“Empty containers are in the wrong place and ports are operating below capacity due to the impact of operating with Covid-19 protocols to keep their workforce safe.

“This means that vessels cannot get into port at their scheduled times and, when they do, the loading is much slower than pre-COVID, this is allied with a shortage of haulage.

“These are global issues. It has become a ‘perfect storm’, where demand is outstripping supply.

“The shipping line sailing schedule integrity was below 50 per cent in December 2020, and when next reported this will, without doubt, be even lower, possibly under 30 per cent integrity on advertised dates.

“These are not minor failings; we have seen ships slip back four weeks from their advertised dates.”

He said the industry was at crisis point even before the cargo ship Ever Green blocked the Suez Canal in March, bringing shipping into the global spotlight.

He said Yantian Port in China was suffering from severe congestion, with Maersk Line reporting vessels waiting 16 days for a berth. He said this was having a greater impact than the closure of the Suez Canal.

Mr Lewis said: “The truth is that no one knows how this will pan out. The shipping lines are without doubt doing very nicely on revenue, but their operating costs will also have spiralled. It will be interesting to see, when the big container lines publish their results, how hard they have been hit, or if they have indeed profited from the pain felt by their customers.”