SIMIC

Citing a Singapore Business Times report, S&P Global Platts container editor Ng Baoying said the daily average number of vessels arriving in Singapore had to wait more than two days in January and February for a berth.

This was more waiting time January, up 47 per cent, and February, up 52 per cent, as the situation worsened from month to month.

Meanwhile, the turn time for container vessels has more than doubled to an estimated five to seven days, from a maximum of two days earlier.

Said port operator PSA: "This exceptional situation is due to a confluence of factors, including an unprecedented and volatile surge in cargo demand, congestion across all nodes in the global supply chain (including depots, warehouses and seaports) due to renewed lockdowns, a lack of usable empty containers while laden ones are held up longer at these nodes, and shipping lines' vessel sailing schedule reliability dropping to 10-year historic lows, causing further delays at almost every seaport worldwide."

PSA also said it has deployed additional resources and ramped up capabilities to support the increased activity at the Singapore port, and is also working with shipping line customers and cargo owners.