China Reopens Terminal at World’s Third-Busiest Port

• The Meishan terminal at China’s second-busiest port reopened Wednesday following a two-week shutdown that further snarled already stressed shipping routes in Asia.
• The terminal resumed normal operations Wednesday, a port official said at a press conference in the city of Ningbo. The terminal was about a quarter of the Ningbo-Zhoushan port’s capacity and was shut from Aug. 11 after a worker was found to be infected with COVID-19.
• The congestion and delays on global shipping routes due to COVID-19 have only worsened this year as Chinese exports hit new records due to rising global demand. This was the second closure of part of a port in China this year due to a COVID-19 outbreak, after the month-long shutdown of Yantian port from late May.
• With demand for vessels and containers rising this year and companies ramping up exports to Europe and the U.S. for the year-end holiday shopping season, even a limited closure of part of a port is costly for both shoppers and shippers

(Source: Bloomberg)