Category: Coronavirus

To coincide with last Thursday’s show of support for the NHS, the London Container Terminal at The Port of Tilbury, undertook a container shuffle of 137 containers to create a special message to NHS workers. Commenting on the container shuffle, Paul Dale, Asset & Site Director at the Por... Read more

Reacting to concerns raised by western countries about the quality of some medical products, Chinese authorities said last week that destination quality certification is no longer acceptable and that only those manufacturers with accreditation to sell their products within China will be allowed t... Read more

The Department for Transport (DfT) has confirmed that workers in ALL supply chains are “essential” and should continue to work to the greatest extent possible through the current Coronvirus lockdown. There has been much uncertainty with regards to the government’s definition of ‘essent... Read more

Economic shutdown in the UK and US, together with passenger air traffic suspensions by the US, has meant demand for imports has dropped, as retailers and other importers closed. With cancelled orders diminishing demand the container lines have begun an aggressive blanking programme of more tha... Read more

The speed at which the shipping lines are announcing new blanked sailings is challenging, but what has grabbed our attention, is the new program just unveiled by MSC, which they are calling 'Suspension of Transit’ (SOT) This week has seen an acceleration of cancelled sailings on the Asia-Nor... Read more

Europe’s international trucking is under increasing pressure as border delays increase, prompting the Freight Transport Association (FTA) to urge EU member states to act on the EC guidelines on ‘green lanes’ for goods at borders, in order to ensure the continuous flow of trade. Gr... Read more

Global trade is the lifeblood of the world’s economy and a critical component in the well-being of all citizens, which is why decisions by governments to contain the virus need to address the consequences of a complete halt to trade and the short- and long-term effect such decisions will have o... Read more

Just days into the UK lockdown and the nation is getting used to the ‘new normal’, adopting new working practices and working from home. These bulletins are intended to keep you informed of the developing global supply chain reaction to the Coronavirus pandemic. As such they can make bleak... Read more

As the global Covid-19 crisis gathers pace and the UK is placed on a heightened lockdown, Metro Shipping and our partners in the resilient logistics sector continue to find ways to ensure cargo continues to move around the world. These are extraordinary and challenging times and it is essentia... Read more

What started as a local phenomenon in China has grown to a global pandemic within a few weeks. The impact on global supply chains has exposed some fundamental challenges of operating within such a highly integrated logistics environment. These unprecedented scenarios require us all to review h... Read more

The supply chain situation in China improves daily and Chinese factories are increasing output, but issues continue to hamper the backlog of factory orders and while ports and terminals are operating as normal, with the unprecedented level of blank sailings, it will take time before the buildup o... Read more

While ocean carriers are preparing for a return to fully booked ships on their Asian services, the air freight market in Asia is in turmoil as the impact of the Covid-19 epidemic starts to be felt. While Chinese factories are only approaching 60% capacity the lack of raw materials is already a... Read more