According to an analysis report released by the Danish shipping consultancy firm Sea-Intelligence on September 15, the global proportion of empty container transport continues to rise. Sea-Intelligence experts calculated the ratio of empty containers to loaded containers based on container volumes and found that currently, the volume of empty container transport has reached 41% of the total container capacity.

Sea-Intelligence stated in their latest weekly report: "The current situation is that for every 10 miles of loaded container transport, there is a need to transport 4.1 miles of empty containers - a significant increase from the pre-pandemic figure of 3.1 miles in 2019." During the pandemic, the common practice was to prioritize shipping empty containers back to Asia for reloading before transporting them back to the United States.

The report emphasizes that this growth trend has been ongoing for five years, with only a brief slight decline observed in 2022.

Freight forwarding company Acumen Freight Solutions discussed the issue of empty containers in a recent social media post, pointing out that trade flows between countries rarely achieve balanced matching.

Acumen explained, "Exports from certain regions far exceed imports, while others are import-driven. This imbalance results in a mismatch in container distribution: some ports have mountains of empty containers while others lack containers." Due to the significant export volumes from Asian ports, they often face container shortages, while ports in North America and Europe experience container surpluses due to imports surpassing exports.

The problem of empty containers has long been a cause for concern. Many predicted a surge in container numbers during the peak season following the talks in Geneva between China, the United States, and Japan, but trade data indicates that this scenario did not materialize.

Since the summer of this year, the number of canceled sailings has been on the rise, leading to a large number of empty containers being stranded at ports. As of August 1, there were a total of 49 container ship sailings canceled at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.

In early August, operations at Chittagong, the largest port in Bangladesh, were disrupted due to an excessive number of empty containers. The Chittagong Port Authority issued a notice stating that the quantity of empty containers had repeatedly exceeded the yard's capacity, causing critical delays in operations, particularly in the delivery of full container import cargo and the stacking and storage of newly unloaded containers.