Summary
Freight news published on August 11 shows short-term supply chain risk clustering around port recovery, regional surcharges and high-value cargo handling. Typhoon Dolphin disrupted Shanghai, Ningbo and other East China port operations, requiring shipment-level checks on vessel waiting, cutoffs and terminal appointments; Kuehne+Nagel’s weekly port update also showed waiting and yard pressure in multiple regions. Maersk increased the Middle East-to-Pakistan dry cargo ECS and restricted some transit cargo to Zanzibar via Dar es Salaam or Mombasa, while Qatar Airways Cargo added specialized containers for semiconductor equipment. In China, the Ministry of Transport highlighted Yangtze River Economic Belt intermodal development and a new transport standardization plan, and China Customs announced an import-use survey, so shippers should manage booking, inland connections, compliance and documentation in one operating plan.
Key Updates
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The Loadstar reported on August 11 that Typhoon Dolphin made landfall around Ningbo and, following earlier storms, kept recovery pressure on Shanghai, Ningbo and other East China ports. The report cited about 2.4 million TEU of containership capacity waiting around Chinese ports and said some Yangshan berths had waiting times of up to about 12 days. For exporters, the immediate risk is not only vessel delay but also terminal recovery, yard appointments, cutoff changes, truck waiting time and empty-equipment availability, so sailing dates, cutoffs and actual gate-in windows should be checked separately.
Source: Tropical storms bring congestion and cargo backlogs at Asian portsKuehne+Nagel’s August 11 global port operational update said an earthquake disrupted Buenaventura in Colombia and Typhoon Dolphin caused significant disruption in Shanghai and Ningbo, while ports in Africa, Asia, Europe and North America showed varying waiting conditions. The update listed examples such as about 13.6 days at Conakry, 15.3 days at Beira and 3.89 days at Mombasa on a seven-day average basis. Shippers planning multi-region routings should avoid judging delivery time from main-port ETD alone and include transshipment ports, inland yards and destination-port congestion in ETA budgets.
Source: Port operational updates from around the world (5 - 11 August 2026)Maersk announced on August 11 that it will change Emergency Contingency Surcharges for dry cargo from the Middle East to Pakistan from September 1 PCD. The listed new rates are USD 2,050 per 20-foot dry container and USD 3,500 per 40-foot, high-cube or 45-foot dry container, up from USD 1,800 and USD 3,000. Middle East, South Asia and transshipment cargo quotes should state the ECS separately and check whether the customer contract applies PCD, ETD or FMC timing rules.
Source: Change to Emergency Contingency Surcharge Middle East to Pakistan (F4)Maersk announced on August 11 that, after a temporary booking suspension into Zanzibar caused by persistent port delays and service disruption, in-transit cargo destined for Zanzibar will not be permitted via Dar es Salaam or Mombasa imports. Shipments already in transit will continue to be delivered according to the latest ETA. For East Africa cargo, bookings should verify whether the carrier accepts the intended transit route, whether destination congestion can trigger diversion or storage costs, and whether the consignee can absorb a longer delivery window.
Source: Restriction on in Transit Cargo to ZanzibarAir Cargo Week reported on August 11 that Qatar Airways Cargo added VRR’s RGX and RZY specialized containers to its TechLift portfolio for high-value, sensitive capital equipment such as semiconductor manufacturing machinery. The 16-foot RZY and 20-foot RGX containers include climate control and shock absorption and are certified for main-deck carriage on the airline’s 777 freighters. Semiconductor, precision-instrument and other high-value air cargo programs should assess temperature control, vibration protection, securing, insurance and ground-handling capability, not only the per-kilo rate.
Source: Qatar Airways Cargo boosts TechLift transport servicesChina’s Ministry of Transport reposted an August 11 China Transport News article saying the Yangtze River Economic Belt is advancing intermodal-center construction around river-sea and rail-water links. It cited products such as international rail plus domestic barge and river-sea direct plus Yangtze rail services, with average transit time shortened by about one third and integrated logistics cost reduced by more than 20%. Exporters in the Yangtze basin can connect waterway, rail and ocean booking earlier to reduce single-point exposure around Three Gorges transshipment, port cutoffs and main-port drayage.
Source: 多式联运大通道畅通长江经济大动脉The Ministry of Transport, market regulator, National Railway Administration, Civil Aviation Administration of China and State Post Bureau publicly released the Integrated Transport Standardization Development Plan for the 15th Five-Year period on August 11. Although it is not a single freight-rate rule, it shapes long-term alignment across intermodal operations, data interfaces, service rules and equipment standards. Logistics providers and exporters should track how electronic documents, data sharing and cross-mode standards move into port, rail, air cargo terminal and warehouse systems.
Source: 交通运输部 市场监管总局 国家铁路局 中国民航局 国家邮政局关于印发《综合交通运输标准化发展“十五五”规划》的通知China Customs announced on August 11 that it will conduct a survey on the use of imported goods in 2025. The general imported-goods use survey mainly covers the value ratio of final use and intermediate use for imported goods other than processing-trade goods and bonded-logistics goods. Importers and integrated logistics providers should prepare import ledgers, trade-mode records, goods-flow evidence, invoices and inventory records so later statistical or regulatory reporting aligns with actual use.
Source: 海关总署公告2026年第113号（关于开展2025年进口货物使用去向调查的公告）DH Logistics View
- Today’s theme is not a single rate movement; it is congestion during recovery and cost embedded in operating rules. East China port recovery after the typhoon can shift gate-in and cutoff timing, while Middle East, East Africa and South Asia advisories show that destination and transshipment acceptance cannot be treated as static.
- DH Logistics recommends managing ocean, air, intermodal and customs work in one execution sheet: ocean freight should track port recovery and carrier surcharges, air freight should verify special-cargo packaging and ground support, inland legs should use Yangtze and rail-water options where useful, and import customs teams should prepare use-of-goods and trade-mode records early.
Planning Notes
- For East China exports, verify the latest cutoff, gate appointment, yard availability and truck queue status shipment by shipment instead of planning only from the original sailing.
- When booking through Shanghai, Ningbo, Shenzhen, Hong Kong or other weather-affected hubs, budget for rollovers, omitted calls, rebooking and storage exposure.
- For Middle East-to-Pakistan dry cargo, include Maersk’s new ECS levels and the September 1 PCD trigger in customer quotes.
- Before booking East Africa destinations, confirm transshipment acceptability, especially Zanzibar routes via Dar es Salaam or Mombasa.
- For semiconductor equipment, precision instruments and high-value air cargo, evaluate temperature control, shock protection, securing, insurance and main-deck eligibility.
- Yangtze River Economic Belt factories should compare rail-water and river-sea products earlier to reduce exposure to main-port congestion.
- Track the transport standardization plan for electronic documents, data interfaces and cross-mode connection requirements that may affect TMS, WMS and customs systems.
- Importers should prepare trade mode, invoice, inventory, sales or production-use records for the imported-goods use survey.
Sources
View sources (8)
- International · Industry mediaTropical storms bring congestion and cargo backlogs at Asian portsThe Loadstar · 2026-08-11
- International · Company announcementPort operational updates from around the world (5 - 11 August 2026)Kuehne+Nagel · 2026-08-11
- International · Company announcementChange to Emergency Contingency Surcharge Middle East to Pakistan (F4)Maersk · 2026-08-11
- International · Company announcementRestriction on in Transit Cargo to ZanzibarMaersk · 2026-08-11
- International · Industry mediaQatar Airways Cargo boosts TechLift transport servicesAir Cargo Week · 2026-08-11
- China · Official institution多式联运大通道畅通长江经济大动脉交通运输部 · 2026-08-11
- China · Official institution交通运输部 市场监管总局 国家铁路局 中国民航局 国家邮政局关于印发《综合交通运输标准化发展“十五五”规划》的通知交通运输部 · 2026-08-11
- China · Official institution海关总署公告2026年第113号（关于开展2025年进口货物使用去向调查的公告）海关总署 · 2026-08-11