China Trucking Update

Written on the 19 February 2020

As factories return to work around China, trucking services are still being heavily impacted.

The drivers that have returned from their homes towns are required to isolate for 14 days while others have still not yet returned resulting in a shortage of drivers.

Certain areas have further local requirements and restrictions in place in an attempt to protect citizens from the virus which is also contributing to longer transit times.

Below is the current status of trucking as advised by our Chinese Partners:

• Hong Kong - Remains unchanged locally however cross border trucking requires advance booking.

• Shanghai - Demand has increased by around 60-70%

• Shenzhen - Since not all factories have yet returned, the trucking demand is manageable as market has only increased by 10-20%

• Qingdao - Trucking companies will only accept bookings within 100KM around Qingdao city. Currently there is no increase to trucking costs but bookings are subject to truck availability.

• Guangzhou - Sea freight collections have increased by up to 50% depending on the pick up location. Some locations have additional local requirements and limitations which are increasing travel time for drivers. For Airfreight the Guangdong area pick up costs remain unchanged and the Guangzhou to Hong Kong trucking costs also remain unchanged at this time.

• Xiamen - Demand has increased by around 30-40%

• Tianjin - Demand has increased by around 40-50%, any cross-province transportation needs to be checked case by case for acceptance of the booking.

We will update you as the situation continues to develop however, If you have any questions or would like to discuss any of your import/export requirements during this challenging period please contact your Scorpion representative.