With industries witnessing high inventories and sluggish demand, there is a rippling effect across various stages of container logistics, according to the latest edition of the Container xChange Forecaster.

“One of the glaring issues that will affect container repositioning and container movement well into the year 2023 is insufficient depot space.”

Christian Roeloffs, co-founder and CEO of Container xChange, says: “There is simply not enough depot space to accommodate all containers. With the further release of container inventory to the market (e.g. the pressure on depots will increase in the coming months. some are a significant challenge and a competitive advantage for others in the business, especially in China due to the repositioning of empty containers there.”

Retailers and businesses are being more cautious in their inventory management strategy this peak season, which technically hasn't happened as they adjust to the shorter freight delivery cycle, the report said.

“There is plenty of inventory at retailers,” said Johannes Schlingmeier, co-founder and CEO of Container xChange. “Once these supplies are exhausted in North America and Europe, companies will re-order and demand for shipping capacity will increase again. This will not go back to maximum pandemic levels, but certainly back to the long-term average upward trend. As a result, you will see a delay in new orders as companies adapt to these more efficient turnaround times in ocean freight delivery. piling up to discourage containers that stay longer in the depots."

“The falling rates and container prices indicate a decreasing demand and surplus of containers. The bigger this gap, the lower the container rates and prices. The logistics companies are already planning for Chinese New Year due to the weak peak season this year,” adds Roeloffs .

Average container prices fell 9 percent from $3,609 in September to $3,286 in October in the US.