by Manal Barakat, SeaNewsEditor

• Stay ahead of supply chain disruptions and port congestion with Kuehne+Nagel’s weekly port operational update.
• Find out the latest vessel waiting times and status of ports in Africa, Asia, Oceania, Europe, the Middle East-Indian Subcontinent, North America, and South and Central America. 

Africa

Ivory Coast

Abidjan: Significant yard congestion is impacting operational efficiency and causing delays in vessel berthing. Some carriers report waiting times of up to 6 days.

Mozambique

Beira: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 11.73 days due to congestion and severe weather.

Asia Oceania

Parts of the Philippines, Vietnam, and China were impacted by Storm Fengshen this week. High winds are still expected in these regions. Read more.

China

Qingdao, Lianyungang, Yantian, and Shekou: These ports experienced closures ranging from 16 to 51 hours due to the storm. Ports in China are likely to remain impacted by the storm until 24 October.

Shanghai: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.63 days due to berth and port congestion.

Shekou: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.16 days.

Yantian: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.22 days due to congestion.

Japan

Yokohama:The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.33 days due to berth and port congestion.

Malaysia

Port Klang: The average vessel waiting time is approximately 1.18 days due to berth congestion and vessel bunching. The high yard density is at around 88% and impacts productivity.

New Zealand

Lyttelton: The port is was affected by severe weather this week. High winds hit the country for several days, causing electricity blackouts and flight cancellations. The storm is expected to ease on Friday, 24 October.

Tauranga: Operations at Tauranga Container Terminal were suspended for four hours on 7 October due to high winds, and another three hours were lost on 16 October. Crane 6 was out of commission all week, affecting the availability of Cranes 7 and 8. The KiwiRail September Block of Line (BOL) finished last week, and a shorter BOL is scheduled over Labour weekend (October 24–27).

Philippines

Manila: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.29 days due to port congestion.

Singapore

Singapore: Due to congestion, the average 7-day vessel waiting time is around 1.97 days. The yard utilisation is at around 85%.

Thailand

Laem Chabang: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 9 days.

Vietnam

Haiphong: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1 day due to port congestion. The yard is at around 70-80%.

Ho Chi Minh City: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.82 days. Due to ongoing port congestion, yard utilisation at Cat Lai remains consistently high at 80-85%, placing continued pressure on terminal operations.

Vung Tau: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.2 days. Yard utilisation remains at around 75%.

Europe

Ports in Northern Europe limited operations this week due to Storm Benjamin. Suspended operations were announced in Rotterdam, Belgium, Felixstowe and Valencia. In addition, the ripple effect of the labour strikes last week impacted handling capacity at other ports in the region, including Hamburg, Le Havre and London Gateway.

Belgium

Antwerp: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 3.39 days. Despite the cessation of industrial action, cargo handling backlogs persist, and the terminal remains heavily disrupted. Due to the storm, considerable restrictions are affecting terminal handling processes.

France

Le Havre: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 4 days.

Germany

DB technical failures and a derailment in Maschen disrupt freight routes, delay shipments, and impact port connectivity across northern Germany. Read more.

Hamburg: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.08 days.

• CTA: The yard is at around 76%, reefers at 83%. The berth lineup is at 100% due to construction. The construction reduces the berth capacity by 1 mainliner and 1 feeder berth. Feeders will be worked between the mainliner vessels. Some vessels call the Unikai instead.
• CTB: Yard is at around 71%. The empty container stock is exceeding limits.

Wilhelmshaven: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 2.13 days. The yard is congested at around 81%.

Netherlands

Rotterdam: All operations are on hold until 11 hours on 24 October due to a severe storm. On Friday, October 17, a power failure at the ECT Euromax terminal affected systems at both Euromax and Delta terminals, causing extended standstill and recovery times. Bad weather is forecasted for Thursday and Friday, with potential operational impact.

• ECT Delta terminal had high container yard occupancy and busy truck handling due to concentrated import volumes and the power failure. Service times for feeders were higher than standard.
• ECT Euromax terminal also experienced high yard occupancy and busy truck handling. Upcoming weeks will see dual deepsea operations, and service times for barges and feeders are expected to remain elevated.

United Kingdom

London Gateway Port: Strong winds are expected at London Gateway from midday 23 October through the early evening, which may impact both Landside and Shipside operations. Yard utilization is reduced (dry at 68%, reefers at 52%), but rail failures are increasing and causing concern.

Southampton: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.5 days. Yard utilisation stands at 91% for dry containers and 75% for reefers. The schedule remains congested due to vessels arriving out of window.

Middle East - Indian Subcontinent

Bangladesh

Chittagong (Chattogram): The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.2 days. A transport strike at Chittagong Port was recently withdrawn, but it caused significant congestion at entry points from CFS and led to dispatch disruptions and increased shut-outs. Yard density remains high at 76%. Berthing delays for both geared and gearless vessels average 0–2 days, with port stay/berth occupancy at 2–3 days. Reefer plug-point occupancy is at 69.64%.

North America

Canada

Montreal: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1 day. The average rail dwell time is around 6 days. The yard is at around 71% while vessel productivity remains high.

Vancouver: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.7 days. The average rail dwell time is around 7 days. Container yard utilisation is at around 77%.

Average import rail dwell time for Canadian cargo (Vessel arrival to departure rail ramp):

• Halifax: 4 days
• Montreal: 7 days
• Prince Rupert: 6 days
• Saint John: 4 days
• Vancouver: 9 days

Mexico

Lazaro Cardenas: Due to ongoing customs supervision at the port of Lázaro Cárdenas, the release and dispatch of import cargo at both APM and HPH terminals is progressing slowly. This has resulted in considerable congestion across the terminal facilities.

Manzanillo: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.08 days. Truck appointments are currently subject to delays across both road and rail services due to a reduction in available truck slots aimed at easing congestion. As for rail operations, a blockade in La Barca on 15 October disrupted services. Although the obstruction was cleared on 16 October, loading activities remain slow, with delays extending up to eight days.

United States

 Average import rail dwell and transit time for US cargo (Vessel arrival to departure rail ramp): 

• Montreal: 5 days
• Prince Rupert: 5 days
• Vancouver: 8 days
• Charleston: 2 days
• Houston: 10 days
• Los Angeles: 5 days
• Long Beach: 5 days
• New York: 4 days
• Norfolk: 2 days
• Savannah: 1 day

South and Central America

Several countries in the Caribbean were hit by Storm Malissa this week, bringing severe rainfall and strong winds. The storm has so far impacted the Dominican Republic and is likely to bring bad weather to Western Jamaica, southern Hispaniola, Haiti, Aruba, and Puerto Rico. Read more.

Argentina

Buenos Aires: Carriers report waiting times of up to 4 days. Terminal operations are impacted by high empty container volumes of 800 TEUs. Paraguay transshipments account for 35% of throughput. Vessel delays persist due to cargo surges; occupancy is at 80%. Infrastructure upgrades are underway. TRP operates smoothly at 66% occupancy. Terminal 4 faced disruption from labour action, with yard occupancy at 95%.

Brazil

Santos: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.53 days. The yard is at 73% utilisation due to a high number of manoeuvres in the channel as well as severe weather.

Chile

Valparaiso: Due to ongoing industrial action by TPS Valparaíso’s Stevedores Union 1, operations have been disrupted since 20 October. Key access points are blocked, and dispatches via ZEAL are suspended until safe transit is confirmed. Read more.

Colombia

Buenaventura: Community blockades have closed the Buenaventura Port corridor since Tuesday, 14 October. Authorities have yet to confirm full reopening. The disruption has caused significant backlog and is expected to lead to port congestion and delays in container receipt and import cargo retrieval. Read more.

Costa Rica

Caldera: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 3 days. The port is currently congested, and the infrastructure is not able to cope with the volume influx, leading to fluctuating levels of disruptions. Import containers for general cargo typically become available approximately three to six days after the vessel's operation at the port, due to yard mobilisation. For reefer and IMO cargo, handling is conducted directly at the port.

Guatemala

Puerto Barrios: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is 2 days. The yard is experiencing high levels of utilisation at around 88%, primarily due to service reliability issues and a shortage of truck drivers. These factors are adversely affecting the timely release of import cargo.

Puerto Santo Tomas de Castilla: The yard is experiencing high levels of utilisation at around 97%, primarily due to service reliability issues. These factors are adversely affecting the timely release of import cargo.

Peru

Callao: A 30-day state of emergency has been declared in Callao, Peru’s principal port city, effective from midnight on 21 October. There is currently a significant disruption at the port, with road blockades impeding logistics and transport operations in and out of this hub. Read more.

How Kuehne+Nagel estimates port disruption statuses

Seaexplorer has four port statuses that are estimated based mainly on the 7-day average vessel waiting time. Other factors include yard congestion, labour strikes, natural disasters or intermodal disruptions. Slightly different rules are applied to major ports, or ports that are hubs in their region, as they are typically more efficient. 

• Business as usual means the port is currently operating without any significant disruption;
• Slightly disrupted is used if the 7-day average vessel waiting time exceeds 2 days;
• Heavily disrupted is used if the 7-day average vessel waiting time exceeds 4 days; and
• Port closed is used when the port suspends operations due to a major disruptive event.

How Kuehne+Nagel calculates the 7-day average vessel waiting time

Mainline container vessels may spend a certain number of days waiting at designated anchorage areas before their scheduled port call.

To calculate the 7-day average waiting time, we consider the waiting days of these vessels, excluding: 

• Waiting times for feeder vessels, 
• Idle ships without an announced next port, 
• Slow steamers heading toward the anchorage but not actively waiting within the designated area
• Vessels passing through the anchorage area without intending to call at the port.

This rolling average is based on the data from the last seven days and is updated daily in seaexplorer.

To find the latest waiting time for a port, enter the port name or code in the search bar and select the relevant option.

Stay Ahead Stay Informed: Register for seaexplorer for the latest disruptions and vessel waiting times at global container ports.