According to an Alphaliner report, the direct impact of the Japanese crisis from the earthquake and tsunami of March 11, 2011 and the subsequent damage of the nuclear plants at Fukushima will reverberate on the container shipping sector in the coming months.
The current assessment of the situation in Japan has been sketchy and often conflicting, with news agencies mostly over-stating the impact on the shipping sector. Of the ports that suffered serious damage as a result of the earthquake and tsunami, only seven handle container cargo - Sendai, Hachinohe, Hitachinaka, Onahama, Kashima, Ofunato and Ishinomaki. These ports only handled 1.3% of the total Japanese container throughput in 2010. The largest amongst them -.the port of Sendai - handled only 155,611 teu last year.
However, if the risk of nuclear radiation from Fukushima escalates and causes the closure of the ports in Tokyo Bay, Alphaliner points out that this would have a significant impact on container cargo movements. The two Kanto ports of Tokyo and Yokohama handled 7.5m teu in 2010, or 38% of the total Japanese throughput.
The government has already defined an exclusion zone for vessels close to the Fukushima nuclear plant of a minimum 30 km radius which could be extended as the risk of contamination worsens. Owners maintain vigilance as some vessel registries warn that ships should remain at least 300 miles away from the affected area. Hapag-Lloyd was the first of the major carriers to announce on March 17 that it will take the precautionary measure to omit calls at the port of Tokyo and Yokohama until further notice. Most other carriers continue to call at Tokyo and Yokohama but do watch the situation closely.
The impact on container import and exports from Japan is more difficult to ascertain currently as the disruption to the country’s supply chain and energy infrastructure is extensive. Power outages, fuel shortages, road and port congestion, component and staff shortages are all affecting factory production and the movement of cargo in the country. A large number of factories in the stricken northeastern regions of Japan still remain closed.
Around 16% of the Japanese container volumes are domestic cargo moves, while the remaining 84% are international container moves which would be affected by any slowdown in Japanese exports in the coming months. The impact on Japanese imports are still uncertain as reconstruction efforts will likely boost demand but this will be offset by slower industrial production needs in the short term.
(Source:http://www.container-mag.com)
