It is known that 90% of traded goods are transported over the water. DW News released a video analyzing among others the cargo shipping industry, the chokepoints and the trade routes.
According to the video, throughout time, ships have gotten steadily bigger to accommodate more containers, with the biggest coming in at almost 24,000 TEU. In fact, bigger ships carry more containers, which in turn means fewer trips and lower fuel costs.
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However, disruptions to the global supply chain, whether as a result of a pandemic causing chaos in supply and demand, or of a gigantic ship getting stuck in a narrow but important canal, often call for a re-think.
Speaking of narrow canals and trade routes, the video presents:
Strait of Hormuz: Some 21 million barrels pass from there per day. In fact, it is a stage for existing and potential tensions between Iran and the West.
Strait of Malacca: Namely it connects China, India and Southeast Asia. It’s barely three kilometres across at its narrowest point. That makes it a natural bottleneck for oil spills, groundings and collisions.
Concluding, the traffic jam in Suez Canal following the Ever Given grounding, along with the possibility of future jams, reopened discussions around alternative routes between East and West.
