The global shipping industry is expected to earn $150 billion in 2021

The spread of N-COV19 has significantly reduced the efficiency of many ports, yards and trailers around the world, resulting in port congestion and slow container turnover. As the international shipping capacity is further strained, freight rates continue to rise.

Drewry's Container Forecaster Report predicts that container sea freight rates will rise 126% in 2021, with 79 percentage points up from its June forecast. The increase was due to a larger-than-expected change in spot exchange rates in the third quarter, extended supply chain recovery, container shortages and tight shipping demand worldwide.

The global shipping industry has seen profits soar as COVID-19 has severely disrupted supply chains, causing severe hold-ups in large numbers of cargo containers, resulting in severe container shortages. According to Drury's forecast, global shipping earnings are expected to reach $150bn in 2021, up from the $100bn forecast in July. Global port throughput will grow by 8.2% in 2021 and 5.2% in 2022.