Typhoon Saudel has delivered another disruption to China’s container shipping network, adding pressure to ports that were already dealing with congestion from earlier storms. The typhoon made landfall in Zhejiang on August 28, after which operations at major gateways including Shanghai and Ningbo-Zhoushan were temporarily suspended. Although port operations have since resumed, the reopening has not immediately restored normal vessel schedules.
The operational impact is now visible in vessel waiting times and network adjustments. According to Hapag-Lloyd’s latest operational update, average waiting times at Shanghai’s Yangshan terminals reached 7–11 days for non-Gemini services, while Ningbo recorded waits of around 4–5 days for Gemini services and 3–6 days for non-Gemini services. Hapag-Lloyd also reported increased waiting times following the combined effects of Typhoons Bavi, Dolphin and Saudel.
For shippers, the disruption is extending beyond the terminals themselves. Reports indicate growing instances of rolled cargo, transshipment and skipped port calls, while high yard density across northern and eastern Asia is creating another constraint on effective capacity. The latest situation highlights how quickly a weather event at a major Asian gateway can move through the wider ocean freight network not only by closing a port temporarily, but by reshaping vessel schedules and cargo flows well after operations restart.