An analysis report released by Danish shipping consultancy Sea-Intelligence on September 15 shows that the proportion of global empty container shipments is continuously climbing. Through calculations based on container volume (teu-miles), Sea-Intelligence experts derived the transport ratio of empty containers to laden containers, finding that empty container transport volume currently accounts for 41% of total container shipping capacity.
The agency pointed out in its latest weekly report: “The current reality is: for every 10 miles a laden container is transported, 4.1 miles of empty container transport is required—a significant jump from the pre-pandemic market disruption value of 3.1 miles in 2019.” During the pandemic, it was common practice to prioritize shipping empty containers back to Asia for reloading before returning them to the US.
The report also emphasized that this growth trend has persisted for five years, with only a brief minor decline occurring in 2022.
Discussing the issue of empty containers in a recent social media statement, freight forwarding company Acumen Freight Solutions pointed out that trade flows between countries rarely achieve a balanced match.
“Export volumes in certain regions far exceed import volumes, while other regions are import-dominated. This imbalance leads to a misdistribution of containers: some ports have mountains of empty containers piling up, while others struggle to find a single box.” Acumen further explained that Asian ports often face container shortages due to massive export volumes, whereas North American and European ports, with import volumes significantly outstripping exports, frequently experience container surpluses.
And the empty container phenomenon has long sounded alarms. Following the US-China Geneva talks, many predicted a surge in container numbers during the peak season, but after a brief spike, trade data indicated this would not happen.
Since the beginning of this summer, blank sailings have continued unabated, and it is precisely these extensive blank sailings that have left empty containers stranded at ports. As of August 1, the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach had collectively experienced 49 container ship voyage cancellations.
In early August, Bangladesh’s largest port, Chittagong, also experienced operational disruptions due to an excessive number of empty containers. The Chittagong Port Authority issued a notice stating that the quantity of empty containers had repeatedly exceeded the storage capacity of the yard, and this overflow was causing delays to critical operations, particularly in the delivery of import FCL cargo and the stacking and storage of newly unloaded containers.
