SA exporters hit again

MAERSK: ONE OF TWO DIRECT TO US SHIPPING LINES CANCELS US ROUTE

- Ina Opperman

If the US tariff of 30% on SA exports to the United States is not enough, there is more bad news for exporters to the US: one of the two shipping companies offering direct shipments there is to phase out its service.

Shipping company Maersk will start phasing out its Amex service that local exporters use to transport goods to the US east coast from 1 October. This leaves only MSC on this route.

The change is due to Maersk moving to a transhipment solution, where cargo from South Africa going to the US must first go through the hubs in Europe before crossing the Atlantic.

This means that shipment times will increase substantially.

Ernst van Biljon, head lecturer and programme coordinator in supply chain management at the IMM Graduate School, said the announcement could not have come at a worse time.

"This decision, after the recent imposition of a sweeping 30% US tariff on South African goods, delivers a double blow to our trade competitiveness and supply chain resilience."