Every day, tens of thousands of containers arrive at seaports from countries all around the world. Liner shipping – container and roll-on-roll-off (roro) vessels – is the backbone of global supply chains.

The COVID-19 pandemic that hit the world in 2020 triggered a “perfect storm” for global container shipping, putting a strain on supply chains and disrupting global trade.

The container supply chain is made up of multiple businesses and individuals, each of which are taking steps to remove bottlenecks and increase container velocity. These are operational measures that require constant dialogue between service providers and shippers to support each other and collaborate for better outcomes. Ocean carriers recognise the part they must play in that and are actively engaging to meet shipper demand and ease the flow of goods.