Freight disruptions that started in 2021
9 events started in 2021; none were ongoing at the end of 2021.
The most severe was Container ship Ever Given grounds and blocks the Suez Canal, a vessel grounding rated severity 4 (Severe).
The most common type was weather stoppage, 3 of the 9 events.
May, July and August had the most starts, 2 each.
7 of the 9 events have a computed measured effect in public data.
Of 4 measured falls that have recovered, the fastest was Container ship Ever Given grounds and blocks the Suez Canal at 6 days and the slowest COVID-19 controls cut container handling at Yantian in Shenzhen at 142 days, counted from the end of each measured window.
Source: IMF PortWatch (portwatch.imf.org), International Monetary Fund, using UN Global Platform AIS data. Statistics derived by World Freight Monitor. Terms.
Key facts
- Events
- 9
- Ongoing now
- 0
- Most severe
- 4 (Severe)
- Median recovery (measured events)
- 6 days
Month by month in 2021
Events by the month they started. Months with events link to the list below the strip.
- Jan0 events in January 2021
- Feb1 event in February 2021
- Mar1 event in March 2021
- Apr0 events in April 2021
- May2 events in May 2021
- Jun0 events in June 2021
- Jul2 events in July 2021
- Aug2 events in August 2021
- Sep0 events in September 2021
- Oct0 events in October 2021
- Nov1 event in November 2021
- Dec0 events in December 2021
- February 2021: Winter storm closes Houston, Galveston, Texas City and Corpus Christi ports
- March 2021: Container ship Ever Given grounds and blocks the Suez Canal
- May 2021: Container ship X-Press Pearl burns and sinks off Colombo; COVID-19 controls cut container handling at Yantian in Shenzhen
- July 2021: Cyberattack on Transnet disrupts South African container terminals; Typhoon In-fa halts container handling at Shanghai and Ningbo ports
- August 2021: Meishan container terminal at Ningbo-Zhoushan closed for two weeks; Hurricane Ida closes New Orleans and the Lower Mississippi River
- November 2021: Floods cut both rail lines and the highways serving the Port of Vancouver
Biggest measured moves
One lead figure per event, the current primary measurement with the largest absolute standardised score, ranked by that score. 5 of 7 shown.
Typhoon In-fa halts container handling at Shanghai and Ningbo ports · Weather stoppage, severity 2 (Moderate), started 2021-07-24 (24 July 2021)
Port calls, Shanghai, 2021-07-24 (24 July 2021) to 2021-07-27 (27 July 2021): 15.0 calls per day against 113.4 expected (-86.8%, standardised score -9.1).
Source: IMF PortWatch (portwatch.imf.org), International Monetary Fund, using UN Global Platform AIS data. Statistics derived by World Freight Monitor. Terms.
This is a measured change in public data during the event window, compared with a baseline before it. It shows timing, not cause. We describe an event as causing a change only when an official source says so.
Container ship Ever Given grounds and blocks the Suez Canal · Vessel grounding, severity 4 (Severe), started 2021-03-23 (23 March 2021)
Transits, all vessel types, Suez Canal, 2021-03-23 (23 March 2021) to 2021-03-29 (29 March 2021): 16.4 transits per day against 55.4 expected (-70.4%, standardised score -4.8).
Source: IMF PortWatch (portwatch.imf.org), International Monetary Fund, using UN Global Platform AIS data. Statistics derived by World Freight Monitor. Terms.
This is a measured change in public data during the event window, compared with a baseline before it. It shows timing, not cause. We describe an event as causing a change only when an official source says so.
Hurricane Ida closes New Orleans and the Lower Mississippi River · Weather stoppage, severity 2 (Moderate), started 2021-08-28 (28 August 2021)
Port calls, New Orleans, 2021-08-28 (28 August 2021) to 2021-09-03 (3 September 2021): 2.9 calls per day against 13.6 expected (-79.1%, standardised score -2.9).
Source: IMF PortWatch (portwatch.imf.org), International Monetary Fund, using UN Global Platform AIS data. Statistics derived by World Freight Monitor. Terms.
This is a measured change in public data during the event window, compared with a baseline before it. It shows timing, not cause. We describe an event as causing a change only when an official source says so.
COVID-19 controls cut container handling at Yantian in Shenzhen · Terminal closure, severity 3 (Significant), started 2021-05-25 (25 May 2021)
Port calls, Yantian, 2021-05-25 (25 May 2021) to 2021-06-24 (24 June 2021): 1.8 calls per day against 9.4 expected (-81.0%, standardised score -2.5).
Source: IMF PortWatch (portwatch.imf.org), International Monetary Fund, using UN Global Platform AIS data. Statistics derived by World Freight Monitor. Terms.
This is a measured change in public data during the event window, compared with a baseline before it. It shows timing, not cause. We describe an event as causing a change only when an official source says so.
Winter storm closes Houston, Galveston, Texas City and Corpus Christi ports · Weather stoppage, severity 2 (Moderate), started 2021-02-14 (14 February 2021)
Port calls, Houston, 2021-02-14 (14 February 2021) to 2021-02-23 (23 February 2021): 10.6 calls per day against 19.4 expected (-45.4%, standardised score -2.0).
Source: IMF PortWatch (portwatch.imf.org), International Monetary Fund, using UN Global Platform AIS data. Statistics derived by World Freight Monitor. Terms.
This is a measured change in public data during the event window, compared with a baseline before it. It shows timing, not cause. We describe an event as causing a change only when an official source says so.
Carried over from earlier years
1 event that started before 2021 and were still in force during it.
- Container ship queue off Los Angeles and Long Beach, started 2020-10-01 (October 2020), ended 2022-11-22 (22 November 2022).
Ended in 2021
9 events with an end date in 2021, whichever year they started.
- Winter storm closes Houston, Galveston, Texas City and Corpus Christi ports, started 2021-02-14 (14 February 2021), ended 2021-02-23 (23 February 2021).
- Container ship Ever Given grounds and blocks the Suez Canal, started 2021-03-23 (23 March 2021), ended 2021-03-29 (29 March 2021).
- Container ship X-Press Pearl burns and sinks off Colombo, started 2021-05-20 (20 May 2021), ended 2021-06-02 (2 June 2021).
- COVID-19 controls cut container handling at Yantian in Shenzhen, started 2021-05-25 (25 May 2021), ended 2021-06-24 (24 June 2021).
- Cyberattack on Transnet disrupts South African container terminals, started 2021-07-22 (22 July 2021), ended 2021-08-02 (2 August 2021).
- Typhoon In-fa halts container handling at Shanghai and Ningbo ports, started 2021-07-24 (24 July 2021), ended 2021-07-27 (27 July 2021).
- Meishan container terminal at Ningbo-Zhoushan closed for two weeks, started 2021-08-11 (11 August 2021), ended 2021-08-25 (25 August 2021).
- Hurricane Ida closes New Orleans and the Lower Mississippi River, started 2021-08-28 (28 August 2021), ended 2021-09-03 (3 September 2021).
- Floods cut both rail lines and the highways serving the Port of Vancouver, started 2021-11-16 (16 November 2021), ended 2021-11-23 (23 November 2021).
By severity
| Severity | Events |
|---|---|
| 4 Severe | 1 |
| 3 Significant | 1 |
| 2 Moderate | 6 |
| 1 Minor | 1 |
By type
| Type | Events |
|---|---|
| Weather stoppage | 3 |
| Terminal closure | 2 |
| Infrastructure failure | 1 |
| Cyber incident | 1 |
| Fire | 1 |
| Vessel grounding | 1 |
4 of 4 measured falls from 2021 had recovered by the last day of data in this build. Recovery time for every event.
2021 events
| Start | Event | Type | Status | Severity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-11-16 | Floods cut both rail lines and the highways serving the Port of Vancouver | Infrastructure failure | ended | 2 Moderate |
| 2021-08-28 | Hurricane Ida closes New Orleans and the Lower Mississippi River | Weather stoppage | ended | 2 Moderate |
| 2021-08-11 | Meishan container terminal at Ningbo-Zhoushan closed for two weeks | Terminal closure | ended | 2 Moderate |
| 2021-07-24 | Typhoon In-fa halts container handling at Shanghai and Ningbo ports | Weather stoppage | ended | 2 Moderate |
| 2021-07-22 | Cyberattack on Transnet disrupts South African container terminals | Cyber incident | ended | 2 Moderate |
| 2021-05-25 | COVID-19 controls cut container handling at Yantian in Shenzhen | Terminal closure | ended | 3 Significant |
| 2021-05-20 | Container ship X-Press Pearl burns and sinks off Colombo | Fire | ended | 1 Minor |
| 2021-03-23 | Container ship Ever Given grounds and blocks the Suez Canal | Vessel grounding | ended | 4 Severe |
| 2021-02-14 | Winter storm closes Houston, Galveston, Texas City and Corpus Christi ports | Weather stoppage | ended | 2 Moderate |