Chinese New Year (CNY) will commence on February 12, 2021. In observance of the celebration, China will be on holiday between February 11th – 17th.

In a pre-pandemic world, shippers typically experienced supply chain disruptions approximately 10-14 days prior to start of CNY. However, this year, experts are warning importers to prepare for an additional 2-week delay for cargo due to several COVID-related conditions.

First, it’s very likely that the Chinese government will encourage factories to close earlier than normal to give workers additional time to travel back home safely. As a result, some factories have already decided to release staff for holiday travel as early as January 5th. With limited equipment and space already a major issue in all US ports, this additional time crunch will certainly restrict Freight All Kinds (FAK) space.

Several carriers – including ONE, YML and CMA – have also reported the temporary suspension of import and export cargo acceptance from South China feeder ports from mid-January through the end of February, with some ports stopping as early as January 5th.

In conjunction with early factory closures and space restrictions, trucking capacity is also expected to become severely limited by the end of January.

Therefore, it is highly recommended that importers needing to move cargo prior to CNY consider booking guaranteed/premium space as soon as possible.

Should you require any assistance in successfully booking your cargo during this turbulent time, please reach out to our Transportation team today.

Shapiro will continue to monitor the situation and provide status updates as they become available.