Typhoons and Blank Sailings Squeeze East Asia Export Cargo
Shippers rushing to move export cargo out of East Asia before National Day factory closures face a tightening bottleneck. Recent typhoon disruptions across major regional hubs have triggered severe vessel congestion. In response, ocean carriers are dropping port calls and blanking sailings to recover their schedules.
The seasonal capacity crunch is compounding existing structural constraints. This volatility leaves logistics managers scrambling to secure allocations on the remaining outbound vessels.
The capacity being pulled out of the market is substantial. Carriers confirmed roughly 193,000 TEU of blank sailings across the main alliances ahead of the holiday, and by some counts void sailings reached 260,000 to 270,000 TEU, according to freight market trackers. Flexport reported that a record typhoon season has removed capacity from China's largest export gateways, with Shanghai and Ningbo absorbing the heaviest loading pressure as Week 41 shapes up to be the tightest stretch of the season.
Charter limits constrain carrier flexibility
When schedules deteriorate, ocean carriers typically deploy additional vessels to clear the backlog. But a persistent lack of available tonnage in the global charter market has severely limited that traditional recovery lever. Carriers are instead forced into difficult operational tradeoffs, choosing between holding vessels outside congested ports or skipping terminals entirely to maintain network integrity.
"To address port congestion, we may deploy additional vessels whenever possible to alleviate operational pressure and accommodate shippers’ cargo needs," Laura Su, Vice President at Wan Hai Lines, said in a written response to the inquiry from The Supply Chainer. "However, the current charter market continues to face a shortage of available vessels, limiting carriers’ ability to add effective capacity. In some cases, service adjustments, including port omissions or blank sailings, may be necessary to minimize broader schedule disruptions."
Managing terminal yard density
At the origin ports, consecutive schedule disruptions threaten to overwhelm terminal capacity. When vessels are delayed or sailings are blanked, export boxes accumulate rapidly.
"On the terminal side, operators have also implemented gate-in restrictions for export containers and allocated pickup schedules for empty containers to prevent excessive yard utilization and maintain operational efficiency," Su said. "These measures help mitigate terminal congestion and support smoother terminal operations."
