Excerpts from Logistics Insider cover story ‘Outlook 2021’
“China undoubtedly is the key driver of the shipping industry but the outbreak of the coronavirus is surely depicting a horrendous effect on the global shipping markets majorly due to its relationship with China. In view of the current scenario, we anticipate the shipping industry to witness a significant change in 2021 with a major shift from China to other uncharted territories. As we see, many countries are already looking at newer markets and moving their base from China to other Southeast Asian countries like Vietnam, Thailand, Laos, etc.” writes Capt. Rahul Bhargava, COO at Essar Shipping.
The slump in demand for goods from China during the pandemic certainly had a rippled effect on the industry from container ships to oil tankers. Trade has been severely impacted, charter rates are down, supply chains have been majorly disrupted. Although the change will be gradual, it is predicted that the industry will bounce back to recovery.
Markets will eventually open doors for new trade discoveries which will strike a balance between the imports and exports, writes Capt Bhargava.
Source: Logistics Insider