Since January 2020, when the pandemic was in its infancy, the rates for transporting a kilo of goods by sea they have grown fivefold, up to exceeding the ceiling of 10 dollars per container. The increase caused by port congestion, the Suez blockade and the shortage of available containers has already had a significant impact on transport costs (+11%) and on the same level as inflation: on average +1,5% on consumer prices. An increase that especially affects poor countries, the ones most exposed to the trend in freight rates. Here is the effect of the infamous "bottlenecks", from the crisis caused by the Suez accident, just passed, to the traffic jams of the California ports, still in emergency. Up to the problems of Rotterdam, waiting to receive US natural gas to compensate for the closure of Putin's gas pipelines.
A silent, important, indeed vital albeit unacknowledged war is being fought on the seas, which is changing some aspects of the world economy. The service industry suffers: the world of cruises, despite efforts to contain costs and sterilize the effects of Covid -19, is now resigned to postponing the recovery for months (if not more). Meanwhile, inindustry, the sector ofcars, as well aselectronics andinformaticsis trying to take measures by shortening production chains, even at the cost of relying on less efficient producers than Asian operators, the ones most affected by the difficulties on the oceans: the five countries most exposed to maritime traffic are China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, South Korea e Singapore. The remedy, for now, gives modest results, also because, despite the variations of the Covid, the traffic of goods has so far experienced modest declines. Indeed, 2021 closes with a slight progress (+1,5%) despite the drop in oil transport (-7%) and an increase of 2022% is in sight for 4,3.
But, as always happens, in the seasons of crisis there is no shortage of winners. THE maritime logistics giants they are heading into New Year's Eve with some epochal bangs and the ambition to land on the ground and fly into the skies, as demonstrated by the three billion-dollar deals in less than twenty days.
Let's go in order: last December 8th the French CMA-CGM has acquired control of the third terminal of the Port of Los Angeles together with the logistics giant Ingram Micro.
The December 20 MSc, the group led by Gianluigi Aponte from Salerno from Geneva, has signed the pre-agreement for the purchase of the logistics network controlled in Africa by the Bolloré group for 5,7 billion euros. Not only are we talking about ports, but, even more precious, are the railway network and the terminal system which, they explain to the group's headquarters, "will allow us to guarantee priority to our ships if necessary, favoring better management of the supply chain supplying". This is why MSC, which already has 62 terminals around the world, agreed to pay a valuation well above the 3 billion assumed when the Breton financier decided to sell.
The third epochal coup was scored on 22 December by the Dane Maersk, number one in the world, which has acquired control of the Chinese LF Logistics, which controls 3,6 depots and a fleet of trucks covering the whole of Asia, for 223 billion dollars. It's not every day that such an important purchase is registered in China, especially in logistics. But Soren Skou, the CEO of the Scandinavian group, does not hide the ultimate goal: to manage the journey of the containers from the factory where the goods are loaded to their final destination. A "door to door" journey by sea but also by land, by rail or by road. And, just to show that it's serious, Maersk has also taken over the German Senator, specialized in air cargo transport, for 644 million dollars.
The logic of the operations is the same: “Ports today are not that efficient as we would like – declares Skou – Hence the need to recover flexibility with integrated solutions”. The same philosophy enunciated by Aponte for Italy: “we need to further develop a network of interports, connected by rail and located every 150 kilometers from the final destination of the goods. Thus they would travel by road only for short distances while the long distances would be made by trains”.
Virtuous intentions, favored by a situation of exceptional prosperity: the average price of container transport has risen, as we have seen, up to 10.000 dollars or a little less (+169% in one year) while the Baltic Dry index, which measures the price of maritime transport of dry products, up 300% since the beginning of the year. CMA-CGM's accounts post a 90% increase to $5,6 billion. And Maersk has just fired the richest quarterly since its foundation in 1904. No less solid MSC, which, among other things, strengthens its cruise fleet despite the problems of Covid -19.
In short, the giants of the sea live a season with the wind in their sails. Strong also of privileges accumulated in less prosperous years. Or of singular guarantees. The project of OECD tax reform which provides one global minimum tax 15% on multinationals with a turnover exceeding 750 million it does not apply to the world of shipping.
