Global supply chain tensions: understanding in order to act

Since last year, global trade has successively experienced a collapse, a sudden upturn and then brisk and accelerated growth in consumption:

• +10.8% increase expected in global goods volumes in 2021 VS +8% as announced in March (Source WTO)

Against this backdrop, supply chains are experiencing unprecedented tensions, with the availability and higher price of raw materials, plant closures for health reasons or due to energy availability in Asia, tensions in logistics chains, in particular with the severe lack of lorry drivers, overloading of logistics platforms and rail infrastructures in the United States, as well as unprecedented congestion at ports.

Faced with this unprecedented very high level of demand for transportation services, the CMA CGM Group is permanently adapting to implement concrete solutions to serve its customers around the world:

• Spot freight rates frozen until February 2022 to give our customers visibility and foster a long-term balanced relationship
• Significant reinforcement of the fleet in operation by buying new and used vessels as well as chartering, representing a +9.1% increase in fleet capacity from 2.76 million TEU (twenty-foot equivalent unit) to 3.01 million TEU between June 2020 and June 2021.
• An additional 800,000 containers in 15 months within our fleet, reaching 4.8 million units.
• Adaptation of ports of call to avoid the busiest terminals.

Throughout 2020 and 2021, the ongoing efforts of seafarers and terminal operators have allowed us to continue to make savings in an extremely complicated health situation and faced with a very high level of demand for transportation services.

CMA CGM is already continuing with its efforts to increase the size of its fleet, with the addition of 14 new vessels owned directly and the purchasing of 49 used vessels in 2021. CMA CGM also wants to make a commitment to its customers by means of multi-year contracts, allowing each one to plan their capacity requirements at set prices.

The tensions in effective shipping capacity for consumer goods seen since summer 2020 is expected to continue until the first half of 2022.

With the major reorganization of the trade market, the CMA CGM Group is continuing to open up new possibilities for its customers and its stakeholders.