Lunar New Year 2024 – Key dates and impact on logistics

The Lunar New Year for the beginning of the "Year of the Dragon" takes place on 10 February 2024 and is the biggest festival in Chinese communities where people celebrate the start of a new year with their families.

Increase of the truck toll rates in Germany as of December 1, 2023

The German federal government is planning to further increase the truck toll on December 1, 2023. Trucks with a gross vehicle weight of more than 7.5 tons are affected. The amount of the surcharge depends on the vehicle characteristics of the respective vehicle subject to the toll.

Golden Week 2023 in China

During September 29 and October 06, most business and factories in China will be closed. The week-long holiday in one of the world’s most important economies poses an impact to the international supply chain. Start to prepare now to minimize the possible disruptions.

New Import Control System in the European Union

The European Union (EU) will implement the Import Control System 2 (ICS 2) on March 01, 2023. ICS 2 will fully replace the current ICS 1 system, which has been in place for many years.

Updates about Ningbo Beilun Port

Due to COVID-19 alert, there has been a temporary closure of the Ningbo Beilun Port. The situation is now improving and the following updates have occurred:

• In general, restrictions within the Beilun district have been gradually easing since October 24, 2022.
• Certain areas in the district have been opened and served as a “green channel” allowing FCL and LCL trucks with permits to enter and exit the sea port area.
• More and more truck drivers are granted "green code", a permit that allows truckers to pass through highway checkpoints and enter the port.
• Facilities or logistics companies on the white list and with traffic permits are starting to resume operations.

With the easing of restrictions, DACHSER in Ningbo has taken the following actions to facilitate the movement of cargo:

• For LCL, the warehouse of DACHSER has resumed cargo receiving since October 24, 2022.
• The teams of DACHSER have been giving guidance to suppliers for applying traffic permits or other necessary passes so that they can deliver cargo smoothly to the warehouse. The process for application may take time, but it is gradually moving.
• For FCL, the trucking situation has improved and is almost back to a normal level.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact your usual DACHSER representative for information about your shipment.

UK introduces new customs system

In the United Kingdom, the current Customs Handling of Import and Export Freight (CHIEF) system is being replaced by the new Customs Declaration Service (CDS). Importers in the UK must therefore prepare for changes.

EU Mobility Package: What changes this year and what it means

New conditions for a more efficient, harmonized and socially acceptable road transport sector: The EU Mobility Package 2020/2022 is intended to drive forward European standardization in the field of freight forwarding and logistics.

Update on the impact on global supply chains

The pandemic situation in Shanghai and other major Chinese cities remains tense. This continues to impact global supply chains in air, sea and land transport. We would therefore like to give you an overview of the current situation in China and other regions:

Update from China on COVID-19 restrictions

The pandemic situation remains unchanged in China. This results in further current developments in air, sea and land transport, which we would like to inform you about in the following, as they may have an impact on your supply chain:

Efficient management of global supply chains by DACHSER Air & Sea Logistics

In air and sea freight, operational procedures are characterized by a high degree of manual effort and require coordination with numerous contacts. With DACHSER as a logistics partner, customers benefit from digital solutions for more efficient management of their international supply chains. A single point of contact at DACHSER supports and coordinates their simple and fast implementation.

Update from China: Disruption at airports

The current lockdown situation in Shanghai is now leading to further and serious disruptions of airfreight supply chains to and from (North-) China. 

Update from China: Extension of the lockdown

Due to the rise in case numbers, increased COVID-19 restrictions were taken in China, which have now been extended. This has an impact on DACHSER's operational activities:

Overview

• The number of COVID-19 cases has been increasing in Shanghai. Although the original plan called for the lockdown to end on April 1 in Pudong, it has now been extended to April 5. Residents living in communities with positive cases must be quarantined for further 7 to 14 days.
• The lockdown in Puxi started on April 1 as planned, following the same measures as taken in Pudong. It is expected to end on April 11.
• During the lockdown, measures will continue to be taken, including massive COVID-19 testing, suspension of public transport, shutdown of stores, halting production and business activities, and employees will only be allowed to work from home.

Impact on logistics

• The impact for trucking is becoming more serious, with pick-ups and deliveries being severely affected.
• For air freight, import gateway of DACHSER in PVG is operational and flights continue to land at the airport. The export gateway of DACHSER remains closed and handover is suspended until April 11, 2022. In response to this, DACHSER is working on solutions via alternative airports. Land transportation is still restricted.
• For sea freight, as of now, DACHSER has not experienced any systematic schedule changes (i.e. port omission) and the port of Shanghai is still being served as scheduled in most cases. DACHSER is monitoring the situation very closely. Effective of April 4, all LCL shipments out of Shanghai this week and the coming week are suspended. LCL shipments that have already arrived at the CFS will be handled. FCL trucking is still possible, but more and more neighboring cities are banning trucks from Shanghai. DACHSER is taking actions to divert as many shipments as possible to Ningbo via different routes.  
• For suppliers located in Zhejiang province, FCL pick-up is available for shipping out of Ningbo.
• For FCL shipments from suppliers located in Jiangsu province, where local policy may reject trucks from Zhejiang province, DACHSER is trying to arrange barge service ex Taicang port to reach vessels out of Ningbo.
• For suppliers located in other provinces, DACHSER is offering solutions case by case, or wherever barge option is possible.
• DACHSER's locations in Shanghai, including the downtown office and the PVG Airport office, have implemented a work-from-home policy since March 21, while the Huaqiao warehouse is closed. You can reach your local contact through the usual communication channels.

Local representatives at DACHSER will be happy to provide information about shipments and possible alternatives.

Rising case numbers in China: impact on operational activities

Last weekend, several major cities in China reported an increased number of COVID-19 cases, which led to intensified measures. This has an impact on DACHSER's operating activities:

Russia – Ukraine conflict: Impact on DACHSER’s global air & sea freight operations

We would like to inform you about the impact of the Russia – Ukraine conflict on international air freight, sea freight and rail operations. Moreover, we would like to share with you which measures we had to take to safeguard supply chains as much as this is possible.

We are suspending any bookings from or to the Ukraine until further notice. Furthermore, we can no longer accept bookings on our rail services between Asia and Europe. The same booking stop applies to intercontinental trucking between Asia and Europe whenever such shipments would be transiting Russia, Belarus or Ukraine. The reason for these measures is that we can no longer guarantee the safe transit of our customers cargo via the aforementioned countries.

We still accept bookings originating from or destined to Russia and Belarus provided that airlines and shipping lines continue to provide capacities on these routes. We are observing first carriers and airlines suspending their activities related to transportation to/from these countries. Needless to say, that bookings to/from Russia and Belarus have to be fully compliant with the most recent governmental sanctions imposed on these countries.

Besides these specific measures we do expect additional implications on our operations. The conflict region respectively the countries involved in the conflict have great significance in the international oil and energy markets. This is already causing some very dynamic developments of oil prices and therefore oil related surcharges such as BAF and fuel surcharges. We will closely monitor further developments and keep you informed. Furthermore, we are already seeing what could be the onset of a capacity crunch in the airfreight market, as European airlines are banned from Russian airspace and Russian airlines are banned from European airspace.

As of now, it is not foreseeable how long this situation will last or how the situation will develop. We will continue to make every effort to provide solutions for our customers and keep you abreast of future developments to ensure the continuation of your international supply chains.

Our teams worldwide will be in touch with you but please do not hesitate to reach out to your DACHSER contact person to evaluate your particular situation and to discuss further arrangements for your air freight, sea freight & rail shipments.

Sea Freight: Disruptions at Ningbo and Tianjin ports

Regarding the disruptions at Ningbo ports, we would like to give you an update. Recently, a Covid outbreak has occurred in Tianjin. Below we offer you an overview of the current situation.

Prepare your supply chain for the impact of Chinese New Year

Chinese New Year (CNY) is coming soon at the beginning of February. Traditionally, it is an important event that influences the global freight market due to the extended national holidays, which means businesses will close, factories will suspend operations, and carriers will reduce capacity in response to lower demand.