Celebrated this year on 22 January, Chinese New Year, also known as Spring Festival, is one of the biggest and longest celebrated holidays not only in China, but also in neighbouring countries such as Indonesia, Malaysia, North Korea, Singapore, South Korea, Vietnam, the Philippines and Brunei. Every year during the celebrations, a mass migration begins throughout the country, as it is traditional to celebrate this event with the family.

The period of the most important Chinese New Year celebrations, which in 2023 will take place between 21 and 27 January, will have a huge impact on global transport. The global supply chain is expected to be re-organised. Chinese factories are stopping all production. This is causing significant delays in deliveries. Customers need to book containers and space well in advance to avoid downtime. This leads to capacity problems, congestion and traffic jams at the largest transhipment ports. Sea freight prices are rising and deliveries are being delayed due to increased demand for goods and space on ships.

Our experts always advise our customers to plan the logistics for the transport of goods and deliveries in the run-up to the Chinese New Year at the turn of November and December. As well as booking sea freight well in advance, it is also important to order goods in advance – when production resumes, factories may have increased demand from buyers. During this time, only those who pay a higher freight rate and additional charges for priority collection of containers can count on just-in-time delivery.