The perspectives of the global logistics chain were addressed by the president of Maersk on the East Coast of South America, Julian Thomas, in a virtual meeting with journalists this Wednesday morning (08). On the occasion, the executive spoke about the giant's initiatives in international logistics and the current scenario of the sector.
But before talking about the perspectives of the global logistics chain, it is necessary to talk about the so-called container crisis, which has lately been making headlines and being the subject of debate. For Julian Thomas, an executive at Maersk, the container crisis is a symptom of something much bigger and that is related to the Covid-19 pandemic. This article is based on a press conference that Portal CPG – Click Petróleo e Gás participated in on December 08, 2021.
In China, for example, ports and factories were closed in early 2020, with an abrupt 30% drop in demand across the planet. With the lockdows there was less need for maritime transport services.
Subsequently, however, recovery came faster than expected. There was an accumulated demand that required a logistics infrastructure.
There was an increase in eCommerce in relation to consumer goods, encouraged by Federal Government aid. That is, the resumption of production added to the accumulated demand resulted in the saturation of available logistics infrastructure.
It is not yet known whether the pandemic will continue to bring damage to the global supply chain
The pandemic is still far from over. Its impacts on the most diverse sectors of the economy should last for years. The resumption is already happening and generating good results.
However, due to the emergence of the new Omicron variant, there are already threats of closures or non-reopening of borders, in addition to records of specific lockdowns, such as in China, which has done so in certain regions due to its severe restriction policy.
For Julian Thomas, these restrictions can bring new impacts to the global logistics chain, as the system is all interconnected. But it is not yet possible to make assessments of these perspectives of the logistics chain specifically.
“The new variant is yet another example of an event that could have an impact, but it is still too early to assess how it will affect the logistics chain. Anything that happens in the chain, which is stressed, can have a global impact.”
Julian Thomas reviews
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Perspectives and actions of the logistics chain for 2022
For the year 2022, Maersk believes in a more prepared market, with an increase in ship capacity by 22% of the world market. The delivery of new ships is scheduled for the period from 2021 to 2025, with a larger volume in 2023.
Maersk is also buying new containers and putting empty ones back into circulation. The objective is to reduce the time it takes for a container to leave and return from the port, gaining more agility in the process.
The volume of demands should remain at the current levels of the second half of 2021, with a forecast increase of between 2 and 4% in 2022.
“There is a crisis, the effects are still strong, the export appetite of the Brazilian market is more than capacity at the moment, but it is managing to partially meet the unexpected demand”
Put Julian Thomas
