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GSCW chat recap: Ocean carriers wrest market power from shippers

‘As for the current situation, the polite word is “chaos.”’

FreightWaves' Greg Miller (left); consultant Tom Craig (right)

This fireside chat recap is from Day 8 of FreightWaves Global Supply Chain Week. Day 8 focuses on global maritime logistics.

FIRESIDE CHAT TOPIC: The shift in power from shippers to ocean carriers

DETAILS: The balance of power between ocean carriers and cargo shippers has changed. Carriers are now firmly in control — with major implications for service contract negotiations and spot rates.

SPEAKER: Tom Craig, supply chain and logistics consultant


BIO: Craig offers consultancy services to companies in many industries around the world, drawing on his experience with corporations such as GE, Abbott and 3M. He has written two e-books and over 90 papers on supply chain management and is on the advisory board of the Logistics & Supply Chain Management Society.

KEY QUOTES FROM CRAIG:

“As for the current situation, the polite word is ‘chaos.’ There are two things at play here. One is the pandemic. The second is the house-of-cards, kick-the-can-down-the-road situation that is underlying what is going on. With the pandemic, it’s no longer a hidden issue.”

“Historically, the control was with the shippers. Now, in the space of less than 12 months, we’ve had a shift, a flip. The heads are now the tails. The carriers are controlling capacity. So I think [for shippers negotiating annual contracts] waiting is a bad hand. Carriers are sitting on the power hand. And if I can’t make a booking or get a container or get on a ship, I’m not feeding my factories if I’m a manufacturer, and I’m not feeding my stores if I’m a retailer.”

“I think we need to stop doing loose agreements that you can get in and out of when the market changes and realize that we’re going to have to do some firm contracting. If I’m a shipper and I’m going to commit my volume in a certain time frame, then I’m going to need to put resiliency into my service contract, which means I’m going to have to ask the carrier to define ‘service.’ I’d want something that’s definable and measurable — with penalties [for nonperformance]. Until we do that, this problem we’re experiencing doesn’t ever get under control.”

The rise of spot rates: Asia-East Coast rates up 120% since March, with Asia-West Coast rates up 63%

Greg Miller

Greg Miller covers maritime for FreightWaves and American Shipper. After graduating Cornell University, he fled upstate New York's harsh winters for the island of St. Thomas, where he rose to editor-in-chief of the Virgin Islands Business Journal. In the aftermath of Hurricane Marilyn, he moved to New York City, where he served as senior editor of Cruise Industry News. He then spent 15 years at the shipping magazine Fairplay in various senior roles, including managing editor. He currently resides in Manhattan with his wife and two Shih Tzus.