b'SHIPPING & TRANSPORTSTEADYING THE SUPPLY CHAIN By Gavin Johnp o c o n g e s t W h i l eN earlythreeyearshavelonger been any ships waiting for port passed since the start ofoff the Californian coastmarking the i o n a ttheCOVID-19pandemicfirst time traffic has normalized since that crippled global supplyOctober 2020. r t s h a s e a s e dchains. Who can forget the images of cargo ships backed up forPrior to the pandemic, the U.S. West u p , t h e g l o b a lmiles off the Californian coast?Coast was the undisputed shipping import centre for North America, with m o v e m e n t o fYet as the world re-opens, restrictionsCalifornias ports taking in over 50 per lift and daily life returns to normal, thecent of goods for the continent. While g o o d s a n doutlook for shipping remains uncertain.in late 2021 California introduced a new The pandemics impact on e-commercequeuing system, it did little to help the s u p p l i e s s t i l lbusinesses shipping their goods acrossoverall situation, with things further exas-the globe is still being felt, as is its impactperated by labour disputes at the ports. f a c e s a n u m b e ron businesses heavily reliant on supplies o f c h a l l e n g e sfrom abroad. What would eventually become the solution to the physical backlog on the i n 2 0 2 3 That said, the roadblocks faced in 2021Pacific coast would be a shift to ports and early 2022 are fortunately no longeron the countrys East Coast and Gulf of the ones that we face today. ChallengesMexico for imports. As of January 2023, with port space and demand have beenthe Port of New York and New Jersey replaced by inflation and over-supply.has overtaken the Port of Long Beach as the second busiest U.S. container port, So, whats the outlook for shipping in ademonstrating a remarkably swift change post-COVID world?in the dynamics of global shipping traffic to North America. On a positive note, port congestion is down 60 per cent from early 2022.Rail congestion to move goods from the Since November 2022, there have noports to distribution centres has seen a 54A CCAB PUBLICATION2023'