Independent journal on economy and transport policy
07:21 GMT+1
This page has been automatically translated by Original news
The World Shipping Council explains because the containerized marine companies are not the problem of the supply chain
Deficiency of hold, schedule untrustworthy and volatility of the hires - the shipowning association emphasizes - is consequences of a completely exceptional situation
January 14, 2021
Today the World Shipping Council (WSC), the organization that represents 20 containerized companies of navigation between which the first eleven to the world for ability to the fleet, it has replied to the turned accusations, up to now unofficially, to these marine carriers from representations and enterprises that take part of the supply chain international. For these last ones, in fact, the dysfunctions that currently characterize the world-wide chain of transport and distribution of the goods, hindered from the congestion of the ports, the unreliability of the programming of the marine services of line and from the exponential increase of the rates of marine transport, would be chargeable essentially to the containerized marine companies.
Substantially, the WSC rejects all the accusations and calls all the parts of the supply chain to collaborate. The shipowning organization remembers that the world-wide chain of supply of the goods is made by distributing producers and that normally plan the activity with months and years of advance payment and, from the marine side, from navigation companies that invest billions of dollars in ships and other assets on the base of the expectations for 25-30 to come. Referring to the determined exceptional situation from the pandemic of Covid-19 burst at the beginning last year and diffused to planetary level, the WSC finds that no part of the supply chain was ready to face this scene and that "the demand for a regulation in a so anomalous situation will not resolve our current problems". A sibylline phrase, this last, perhaps reported to initiatives announced, but not still undertaken, from associations of loaders and shippers mainly in within EU and the USA because it is analyzed and gives regulating to the unusual state of the market of the containerized marine services.
According to the WSC, "all the parts are making the possible one in order to exceed this pandemic unprecedented". The shipowning association - almost to confirmation of an involuntary guilt - specifies unfortunately that some of these you leave, ", can unconsciously cause problems to others leaves of the chain". For the WSC, however, "a dialogue more tightened between all is necessary we in order to comprise better as to support alternatively and to collaborate in order to obtain to us turned out better. In order to remove the bottle necks - specific the shipowning organization - the speed of the containerized flows must increase, the forecasts must be more accurate and must increase to the transparency in all the supplying chain. The marine carriers - it is the conclusion of the WSC - are making of their best in order to manage the interruptions of the supply chain caused by the Covid-19 and invite all the parts to engage themselves in constructive way to make the same one".
If there is fraud, the World Shipping Council understates in synthesis, is also correità.
As for the theses to exoneration, beginning from the last reasoning capacity from the WSC in support of innocence of own associates, accused (up to now unofficially) to have wittingly I churn in order to reach the current exponential increase of the hires by now from months in existence and in the full load of the pandemic, increase of the rates of marine transport that - second various voices of the counterpart - you would see confirmation in the financial results in recent months records recorded from the oceanic marine carriers, the retort of the World Shipping Council is that "the hires vary based on the question". The WSC clarifies the task - arguable, it would say the counterpart - specifying that "in spite of the initiatives in order to increase the ability to the fleet available, the ability question exceeds the offer by far. As in any free market - the shipowning organization observes - this exercises a pressure to the rise on the rates. Comprehensibly, loaders and shippers are not content, but - the WSC specifies - it does not have to forget that this is same the fundamental one of market that has maintained to the hires to levels many low for various years. The history - emphasized the WSC - demonstrates very quickly that the hires fluctuate in the years on the base of the loss of balance between supply and demand, coming down from levels elevated with the stabilization of the conditions of the market".
As for the accusation to have intentionally caused deficiency of ability to marine transport, the controbatte WSC that the oceanic carriers "are adopting all the measures available to the aim to increase the speed and the efficiency of the transport of the goods, included I use it of all the tonnage available". "When in according to trimester of the 2020 question it is come down of the 20-30% about - the organization explains shipowning - the carriers have reduced the services and stopped ships. But with the increase of the cargo volumes the carriers have redistributed such resources as fast as possible".
Always replying to the accusation to have scientemente I churn in order to limit the hold ability, and answering also indirectly to the critics of the representatives of the shippers who complain that the agreements in existence between the fine shipowners are used own to such, the World Shipping Council evidences that, to the opposite one, the marine carriers "share the ability to the aim to maximize the efficiency. The agreements of sharing of the ships - the WSC emphasizes - are extremely important in the periods of elevated question of ability to marine transport. They assure that all the slots available are used also if a single operator does not have from its customers asks sufficient for a specific marine route. Graces to an agreement of sharing of the ships - the WSC explains - such ability can therefore be put on of other carriers partner who can offer it to own customers".
The World Shipping Council answers also to who denunciation that the carrier marine containerized does not have some intention to increase the hold ability not even in future: "contrarily to some fears - the organization specifies - the marine carriers are not cancelling the investments in future ability".
At last, about the critics for the unreliability of the schedule introduced by the shipowners in order to notify to the customers the dates of departure of their ships, the WSC finds that "the pandemic has had a remarkable impact on the possibility of access to container and other equipments. Since the activities of terrestrial transport, the harbour activities and the operations of warehouse are hit by the lockdown, from deficiency of labor and from traffic overloads - the WSC clarifies - the positioning, I use it and the restitution of the container in the within of the supply chain total has a slow down quickly. Besides to maximize the ability to the ships, the marine carriers are working in order to improve the access to the container. They are accelerating the repositioning of the container empty in excess and - the shipowning association emphasizes - they acquire, they rent, they repair and they send all the container available. Simply, unfortunately, currently they are not immediately available more container and is therefore necessary to adopt all the measures in order to improve the employment of the fleet of existing container".
The World Shipping Council evidences that the problem of the deficiency of containers available produces more to earth that in sea: "the delays that happen to earth - explain the association - they have a directed impact on the ability to the marine carriers to make to berth and to unload the ships second the programs and on the ability to empty the marine carriers to supply container whereby and when it is necessary. It is important - the WSC emphasizes - than all the users of the equipments, included the customers and the suppliers of transport via earth, give back ready the container empty so as to return the equipments available for the next customer".
Not being the joined counterpart up to now to introduce to the authorities which circumstantiated accusations, he is from seeing if this line of defense exposed from the World Shipping Council will be sufficient in order to inhibit the warlike purposes of representatives of loaders and shippers who up to now have made fire and flames but not have introduced formal requests to person in charge.
- Via Raffaele Paolucci 17r/19r - 16129 Genoa - ITALY
phone: +39.010.2462122, fax: +39.010.2516768, e-mail
VAT number: 03532950106
Press Reg.: nr 33/96 Genoa Court
Editor in chief: Bruno Bellio No part may be reproduced without the express permission of the publisher