Typhoon Dolphin disruption at East China ports

Dear Valued Customers,

 Typhoon Dolphin came ashore at Yuhuan in Taizhou, Zhejiang on the evening of Sunday 9 August with sustained winds of 151 km/h, the strongest typhoon to hit China this year. Shanghai and Ningbo-Zhoushan closed ahead of it and began phased reopening from 10 August. The backlog will affect sailings out of East China for the next two to three weeks.

What happened

Ningbo-Zhoushan closed fully from 18:00 on 7 August across its Beilun, Daxie, Meishan, Yongzhou and Zhenhai terminals, with more than 800 commercial vessels moved to safe anchorage. Shanghai followed on 8 August, with Yangshan halting empty container receiving at 06:00 and laden at 08:00, raising over 100 quay cranes and evacuating vessels offshore. Waigaoqiao stopped laden operations at midday. Both ports were closed through 8 and 9 August and began safety inspections, pilotage restoration and phased gate reopening on 10 August.

Both ports went into the closure already congested. Berth waiting times at Shanghai’s major terminals were running between 4.4 and 8 days in the days beforehand, with yard density elevated after a heavy first half of the year. There was little slack in the system to absorb a four-day shutdown.

Where things stand

Berth waiting times at Shanghai’s major terminals were running between 4.4 and 8 days before the closure. Vessel bunching after reopening is expected to push that to 7 to 10 days or more, with yard density between 75 and 90 per cent. Ningbo’s pre-closure waits averaged 2 to 3 days, but with 800 vessels queued offshore, post-storm berth congestion there will be significant.

Expect vessel omissions, blank or amended sailings, and rolled cargo over the coming fortnight. Container gate-in appointments are constrained, and equipment repositioning will be slower than usual. Industry forecasts put recovery across Greater China ports at mid to late August, weeks 33 to 35.

Air freight

Shanghai’s two airports cancelled 1,384 flights on 9 August and a further 943 on 10 August, cutting capacity by around 40 per cent. Ningbo Lishe cancelled all flights on 9 August and resumed on 10 August. Uplift capacity out of the region will be tight while backlogged cargo clears.

What this means for your cargo

If you have bookings loading out of Shanghai, Ningbo or nearby ports in August, allow additional transit time. Cargo already gated in may still be rolled if the nominated vessel omits the port, and downstream effects on Australian arrival windows should be expected even where the origin booking looks intact.

What we are doing

We are reviewing active bookings on affected services and will contact you directly where a vessel has been omitted, a booking rolled, or an ETD revised. Updated ETDs and ETAs will follow as carriers confirm them.

What would help

Tell us now if you have cargo that is time-critical, rather than closer to the deadline. If you are placing new orders for August or early September shipment, build the buffer in at the planning stage.

Thank you, 

SILA Global Team