As winter winds increase, supply chain bottlenecks ease

As fewer containers anchor off California ports, supply chain bottlenecks are easing. However, there is still a shortage of truckers, and a new variant of Covid-19 is still affecting supply chains.

Shipment delays and difficulties procuring materials are largely responsible for the rising level of inflation in the U.S.

There are signs of improvement this week, as the number of container ships docked at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach decreased substantially.

CNN reports that there were 30 boats anchored at these two ports on Dec. 8, down from more than 80 when the region was at its busiest. Southern California had 86 container ships waiting near its ports in November.

Matt Colyar, Moody's Analytics' chief economist, said that current figures indicate supply chain issues are improving.

I am becoming increasingly confident that the worst is over, he said.

Air Shipment It is estimated that 60 Asian vessels are waiting in deeper waters thousands of miles away. Ships are now traveling from Asia at a slower speed in order to reduce congestion.

According to Jim McKenna, CEO of the Pacific Maritime Association, which represents West Coast terminal operators, the route now takes 22 to 24 days instead of 10 to 14 previously.

There have been some promising signs that shipping delays have improved, but one hiccup has emerged: shipping officials created a new voluntary system in November by which ships now adhere.

In winter weather, there are strong winds that can create rougher seas that could affect a large number of vessels waiting to dock.

Container ships are tall and tend to drift a lot due to higher winds, Kip Louttit, executive director of the Marine Exchange of Southern California, which monitors ships, told the Wall Street Journal.

In this area, the ships have been spread out and reduced their speeds.

Due in part to a huge increase in demand, the hold-up is partly due to a delay.

According to Beacon Economics, a research and consulting firm, the neighboring ports handled 77 million loaded import containers between January and September, an increase of 21 percent from the same period in 2019.