In some ports in Shanghai, it is still common for empty containers to pile up like mountains.

(Reuters file photo)

[Compilation of Wei Guojin/Comprehensive Report] "South China Morning Post" reported that as many companies make more purchases from Southeast Asia and export less and less goods to the United States, coupled with the shift of supply chains and weak global demand, workers in China's export industry have expressed concerns about export prospects. worried.

They think the "good old days" are gone forever.

The report pointed out that on a recent working day, there were few trucks on the road leading to the Shanghai Waigaoqiao Container Terminal, and rows of containers not far away tested the stacking capacity of the limited space in the port.

A worker surnamed Wang said that most of the containers are still empty. "Although we are a little bit busier than the past two months, it hasn't changed much. In the past, trucks had to wait in long lines for loading and unloading. Now look, the roads are empty."

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Data from China's General Administration of Customs showed exports rose a better-than-expected 14.8% year-on-year in March, recovering sharply from a combined 6.8% decline in January and February.

Still, logistics workers in Shanghai see the recovery as slow, and they are pessimistic about the long-term outlook for exports.

Hua Yuting, manager of Shanghai Ocean Shipping Agency Co., Ltd., said that the shipping industry has seen some recovery since March, but it will take more time to see substantial improvement.

She pointed out that "the disruption caused by the epidemic prevention and control in the past few years has caused many companies to transfer to Southeast Asia to source goods. them".

Lu Qinglin was one of dozens of truck drivers who risked fines by parking their trucks on the side of the road between Wusong and Waigaoqiao, where mountains of empty containers are still a common sight at some Shanghai ports, the report said. They don't want to pay for parking because they don't have jobs.

He said, "There are 50,000 container (container) trucks registered in Shanghai. According to current demand, only 30,000 are needed."

He has been driving container trucks in the Yangtze River Delta since 2010.

"In Kunshan, 10 out of 100 factories have been moved to Vietnam and other Southeast Asian countries," he said.

Fewer cargoes and rising oil prices cut his monthly income by about two-thirds.

Between 2010 and 2021, he earned a steady monthly income of 15,000 yuan (67,000 Taiwan dollars), he said, and now he only earns 4,000 to 5,000 yuan (18,000 to 22,000 Taiwan dollars) a month.

The "Container Availability Index" (CAx), which measures container import and export operations, remains high. Since the beginning of this year, 20- and 40-foot containers in Shanghai Port have remained at 0.64.

A value of 0.5 represents market equilibrium, a value below 0.5 indicates a shortage of containers, and a value above 0.5 indicates a surplus of containers.

Since September last year, the index in Shanghai has been much higher than in the past two years, and the situation in Shenzhen and Tianjin is similar.

Hua Yuting doubts whether China's exports can return to pre-epidemic levels. She said, "Why should a customer who left for Southeast Asia come back, if the cost there is lower and the quality is guaranteed?"

As for container truck drivers, after a slight pick-up in business in March, they are still not hopeful of changes this year, Lu Qinglin said, "I'm trying to sell my truck now and find a new job, just waiting for an acceptable price. I don't think the good days will come back".

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