MSC Delays at Panama and Cartagena Ports

We have been advised by Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) that transshipment ports Panama and Cartagena are experiencing significant congestion due to high volumes of cargo coming from Asia and transshipping at these ports. The congestion is causing limited movement at the terminal, delays loading and unloading connecting vessels and high sitting times.

MSC provided the below details for specific lanes and vessels.

• To USA EC service covering cargo from Panamá to the ports of Baltimore-Charleston-New York- Norfolk-Freeport is currently out of proforma, with some vessels experiencing delays of up to 20 days in their arrival to Panama. This affects cargo from vessels such as MSC DAKAR X// MSC MAPUTO // MSC LAGOS X.
• The Central America Express service that moves cargo to Houston – New Orleans is facing high congestion and space limitation, which, combined with the congestion at the port of Panama, increase the transit time for vessels.
• Similar to Panama, the port of Callao, that is also experiencing congestion, with sitting time sometimes exceeding 15 days

We will continue to monitor the situation and will provide updates as necessary.