In late September 2025, the Transpacific shipping market has been buffeted by a confluence of natural, commercial, and geopolitical shocks. Super Typhoon Ragasa, after battering southern China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and the Philippines, has weakened into a tropical depression while heading toward Vietnam. Ports in China’s Guangdong region halted bunkering and terminal operations ahead of the storm, and carriers are reporting multi-day waiting times at key hubs: Yantian (5–7 days), Shekou (4–5 days), Hong Kong (2.0–2.5 days), Nansha (3–4 days), and Kaohsiung (1–2 days).
These delays are impacting shippers inconsistently, based on the type of cargo and degree of urgency. Time-sensitive cargoes like perishable and medical supplies are experiencing the most brutal breaks, with Yantian and Shekou delays ranging up to seven days. For this, Shippers are either diverting to other ports such as Ningbo or Shanghai or paying a premium to use air freight in order to stay away from defaulting on delivery windows. Seasonal and promotional products associated with retail cycles like Golden Week and sales for upcoming holidays also come under intense stress, since even a five-day delay in China carries the risk of falling into two weeks of delay upon arrival in destination markets, putting retailers&#xx; on-time restocking capability at risk. Industrial shipments of chemicals, plastics, and machinery parts are moderately affected; while they typically move with longer lead times, manufacturers running lean inventories risk production disruptions if...
