News / Trump will have a 'heavy impact on container volumes', warns Wan Hai chief

Photo: Wan Hai Lines

US president-elect Donald Trump’s policies will have a heavy impact on container volumes and supply chains, said Wan Hai Lines’ general manager Tommy Hsieh yesterday, as the Taiwanese carrier prepared for “another strong year”.

Firstly, Mr Trump’s announcement of tariffs on imports from Mexico, Canada and China has already caused a rush to front-load goods before the tariffs come into effect.

Secondly, he has voiced his support for the International Longshoremen’s Association’s objection to automate operations in US east coast ports.

The situation must be continuously monitored. If the strike on the US east coast resumes on 15 January, it may affect shipping schedules, and delays in vessel arrivals will mean tightness of slot availability.

These factors mean that freight rates are unlikely to see huge downward pressure in 2025, as the deployment of large ships will keep ports congested and vessel-routing round the Cape of Good Hope is likely to continue.

Mr Hsieh said: “Large ships are increasingly deployed and these vessels have caused congestion at the terminals. As ships become larger, terminals can’t keep up, causing longer loading and discharging operations. This year, in Singapore alone, ships had to wait four to five days to berth, and we saw waiting times of three to four days in Shanghai and one to two days in Ningbo.”

The detours round the Cape have mopped up almost all available vessels, causing a tonnage shortage that will also keep freight rates high, he added.

“Boxship charter rates have doubled from last year, reflecting the insufficient supply of vessels. Only 0.3% of the global boxship fleet is idle, which is unprecedented in history.

“Last year, everyone originally expected that market conditions this year wouldn’t be good. However, the Red Sea crisis resulted in freight rates this year being much better than in 2023.” Mr Hsieh said.

In the first nine months of 2024, Wan Hai’s revenue was up 60% year on year, to TW$120.27bn ($3.8bn), while net profit of TW$34.63bn ($1.1bn) was achieved, reversing the net loss of TW$1.9bn ($58.9m) in the same period a year ago.