With Chinese New Year closures approaching, vessels are sailing full and some delays are being experienced.
Strong Pre-CNY Demand and Full Vessels
We are now in the final days before factories begin to shut down ahead of Chinese New Year on 17 February 2026. In practice, many factories stop production around one to two weeks earlier to allow workers time to return home, meaning factory output and available loading opportunities are expected to reduce as we move into early February.
As a result, demand remains very strong as shippers rush to move cargo before production pauses. Vessels across the main Asia–Europe services are running full, with space continuing to be tight as volumes peak ahead of the holiday.
We are seeing some delays to vessels due to high utilisation, reflecting the pressure on capacity, although there are no widespread disruption issues to report. Schedule reliability is largely holding up, although short-notice adjustments remain possible given how full vessels are sailing.
Outlook After CNY
Looking beyond Chinese New Year, demand is expected to dip due to the factory closures. Carriers are expected to introduce a number of blank sailings as part of their usual post-holiday capacity management. This reduction in capacity is intended to rebalance space and demand as factories reopen and shipping patterns adjust.
We continue to monitor developments closely and will keep customers informed as conditions evolve over the coming weeks.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding your shipment, please don’t hesitate to contact our Customer Service Team at 01376 533039 or email [email protected].
