DHL - Ocean Freight Market Update, Apr 2023

DHL provides an overview of the recent announcement by MSC and Maersk to terminate their 2M alliance in January 2025, which may trigger a reshuffle of the carrier landscape and the formation of new alliances. The current blank sailing program is balancing out demand with a decrease of 27% of capacity until mid-February, and carriers may implement more blank sailings if necessary to stabilize the market. While demand has been slow in some regions, it is expected to pick up after Lunar New Year holidays, and balancing capacity deployment from carriers is important to hold rates. Inland transport capacities are reported as sufficient in most areas, but chassis shortages are still an issue throughout the US, and seasonal weather delays and restrictions may affect truck and rail moves in Canada and the US. Overall, backlogs and delays still occur, but the situation is improving. Rates remain stable or are decreasing in most regions, and carriers are looking for export freight in some areas.