After two years of upward trend in the rate, the costs of maritime transport for Mexican importers are giving up, since at the beginning of last October they hit the floor of 2,500 dollars per FEU and the trend is that they close the year at around 3,000 dollars. , according to Nicolás Portenza, president of the company.
“We understand that it is partly due to the macroeconomic situation, in which the inflationary and possibly recessive scenario generates uncertainty in the market and the importing industry stops placing orders with the force with which it had been operating, because it is out of sell that merchandise in a timely manner”, commented Portenza.
This November 10, the Bank of Mexico (Banxico) indicated that global inflation remains high and upward risks persist, although the pressures on the prices of primary goods and the disruptions in the supply chains (in which is inserted shipping) have shown signs of mitigation. In Mexico, headline inflation decreased slightly to 8.41% in October this year.
In interview with ExpansionNicolás Portenza agreed that the pressures in the supply chain are easing, because the same levels of port saturation that were registered last year are no longer observed and, in addition, the decrease in maritime freight rates is paying the slowdown in inflation rates.
“It undoubtedly collaborates, if logistics costs go from levels of 8,000 to 3,000 dollars, it is a considerable discount in transportation costs that must be transferred to the final cost of the product that is sold at destination, of course it helps reduce inflation” assured the executive.
Inflation and macroeconomic conditions have forced shipping lines to take actions that also mitigate rate increases, such as omitting ship departures from Asia to the United States and Mexico, derived from a weakened demand for goods; Despite this, there is still an extra capacity in transport on this maritime route.
“We believe that at the same time as this phenomenon is taking place, the lines are increasing weekly capacity, expecting a high season not at the level of 2021, but still strong; the double impact is that there is a real economic contraction and the excess supply suffocates the market and causes the rate to collapse vertiginously in three weeks, which was between September and the beginning of October”, emphasized Portenza.
At the end of the third quarter of this year, Mexican ports handled 6,209,328 20-foot containers (TEUs), which translates into a 7.3% increase compared to 5,785,936 TEUs in the same period last year.
Of the total, through the Pacific, through which maritime trade with Asia is developed, 4,502,826 TEUs were reached, 11.1% more than the 4,051,937 registered in the same interannual period, based on figures from the General Coordination of Ports and Merchant Marine, of the Secretary of the Navy.