No Congestion Relief in Sight

It’s shaping up to be another congested year for global supply chains as the ongoing pandemic keeps consumers from spending on services versus goods, exacerbating resource shortages and delays. Logistics services providers must view this as a longer-term situation and plan accordingly, says a recent report from Descartes Systems Group.

U.S. ocean container import volumes will remain high in 2022, which indicates similar levels of disruption as 2021. While December 2021 was the second month in a row with declining container import volumes (see chart), it was still a record month, with volumes up 1% from 2020 and 25% from 2019.

Consumer behavior is driving a high ratio of goods-to-services expenditures and doesn’t appear to be changing. Volumes in 2021 were 18% higher than 2020 and 22% higher than 2019. When considering the extent of the increase, delays and disruption were inevitable, the report says.