The figure turns port delays into a fleet-capacity problem: ships waiting outside terminals are not completing rotations, repositioning empty containers or returning to Asia on schedule. In practice, congestion is removing capacity from the market at the same time as carriers are pushing through higher July rates.
According to Linerlytica data cited by industry reports, congestion has now reached its highest level in four years. North Asia accounts for the largest share of the backlog, followed by North Europe, while South-east Asia, the Mediterranean and Africa are also contributing to the squeeze.
The result is a market in which nominal vessel capacity can look available on paper, while effective capacity is being reduced by delays at both ends of major trade lanes.
The pressure is already visible in freight-rate data. Drewry’s World Container Index rose 9% this week to USD 4,530 per 40ft container. On the Asia–Europe trade, Drewry said rates from Shanghai to Genoa increased 10% to USD 6,360 per 40ft container, while Shanghai to Rotterdam rose 7% to USD 4,682.
Xeneta’s latest weekly ocean container update also points to a sharp rise in Asia–Europe spot rates. As of 25 June, its market average rate from the Far East to North Europe stood at USD 4,763 per FEU, up 65% in a month. Far East to Mediterranean rates reached USD 6,044 per FEU, up 40% over the same period.
Port delays become a capacity problem
However, the rate increase is not only about demand. Operational reports from forwarders and carriers suggest that vessel bunching, yard density, inland transport constraints, heat disruption and longer port stays are all reducing the speed at which ships and containers can move through the system.
Kuehne+Nagel’s latest port updates point to continued pressure at several major gateways. In North Europe, ports including Antwerp, Hamburg and Rotterdam have been dealing with delays linked to high yard utilisation, vessel bunching, limited truck booking slots, crane issues and inland transport constraints.
Hamburg has faced particularly tight conditions, with high yard occupancy and terminal productivity affected by equipment and labour constraints. In Rotterdam, limited truck booking availability and pressure on terminal operations have added to the challenge for shippers trying to move cargo inland.
The congestion is not confined to Europe. Kuehne+Nagel’s updates also show delays at key Asian hubs, including Shanghai, Ningbo, Yantian and Singapore. These ports are central to east–west container flows, which means delays there can quickly affect vessel schedules, equipment availability and onward connections in Europe and the Mediterranean.
Weather has added another layer of disruption. Hapag-Lloyd warned this week that a heatwave across Northern Europe had slowed terminal operations across Benelux and German ports. The carrier said high temperatures were causing equipment overheating, additional hydration breaks for dock workers and IT-related outages.
Although Hapag-Lloyd later said conditions were easing, the warning shows how little spare resilience there is in parts of the network. When yards are already full and ships are already bunching, even short-lived weather disruption can extend delays and create fresh backlogs.
Congestion hides how much capacity is really available
The problem also complicates the usual reading of carrier capacity. A carrier may technically have vessels deployed on a trade lane, but if those vessels are waiting outside ports, arriving out of rotation or unable to complete round trips on schedule, that capacity is not fully available to the market.
That is why congestion can support rates even when there is no single dramatic disruption. It acts as a hidden capacity drain: ships remain in service, but part of the fleet is trapped in queues.
Carriers have also been moving to raise prices. MSC, for example, has announced new Far East to North Europe, Mediterranean and Black Sea rates from 1 July. Drewry said Asia–Europe spot rates increased this week as carriers implemented higher FAK rates and peak season surcharges amid strong peak season demand.
