(Yicai Global) Jan. 17 -- The world’s busiest cargo port, the Chinese port of Ningbo-Zhoushan, resumed operations on Jan. 14 after a partial lockdown lasting two weeks due to a resurgence of Covid-19 cases, but there continue to be severe bottlenecks in ports around the world, analysts said.

Goods can now be shipped out of Ningbo but foreign ports are still blocked as the pandemic continues to impact port operations, said Li Qi, a senior staff member at a freight forwarding company. Li is rushing to ship his goods out this week as their company shuts down for the Chinese New Year holiday next week.

Other firms are waiting until after the Spring Festival to ship orders to see if freight prices come down. Tingmei Chuangzhi Clothing has CNY20 million (USD3.1 million) worth of clothing in storage that has yet to be delivered because of high shipping costs, Director Fang Yuxing told Yical Global. Buyers are waiting for the transport costs to come down otherwise they will make no profit.

Ports’ manpower and equipment cannot meet consumer demand in the short term, triggering continuous congestion, said Chen Yang, editor-in-chief at shipping consulting platform Xinde Marine News.

Ningbo-Zhoushan Port’s cargo throughput grew 4.4 percent last year from a year earlier to 1.2 billion tons, ranking first in the world for the 13th straight year, according to the Zhejiang Port and Shipping Management Center. Its container throughput gained 8.2 percent from 2020 to 31.08 million twenty-foot equivalent units, third highest in the world.

Editor: Kim Taylor