Full steam ahead for Nippon Express’ maritime forwarding Vol.4

December 15, 2021

― Many lanes and routes to choose from

Besides such know-how, Nippon Express also has an edge in the diversity of multimodal solutions it can offer as a global forwarder. The past 18 months of pandemic-led convulsions in sea and air cargo provided ample proof of the company’s agility. Demand for services on Nippon Express’ routes connecting south-east and east Asia to Europe using sea and rail skyrocketed, with cargo volumes on the company’s Eurasian rail services expected to double in 2021 to over 7,000 TEUs.

When this flood of Eurasian cargo rail traffic led to bottlenecks at Polish and Belarussian borders, the company quickly adapted by using a high-speed alternate route via Kaliningrad to Germany. With continued congestion in ports on the US west coast, the company is now considering a new service to connect Asia to North America via Eurasian rail and shipping across the Atlantic to the US east coast.

These services may initially start as emergency measures undertaken during the pandemic but look likely to persist.

“We are seeing customers who are incorporating Eurasian sea-and-rail routes into their standard supply chain plans, and it’s not just the traditional automotive makers who are doing that, but a range of sectors,” says Kakiyama. “We believe such demand will continue to grow, including from the perspective of reducing carbon emissions since rail transport has a smaller environmental impact.”

Another reason why shippers may look towards the Japanese logistics giant is that the forwarder does not only forward freight but also boasts a global network of logistics centres, enabling vital adjustments such as increasing temporary warehousing to ease the strain on disrupted supply chains. As the blockage of the Suez Canal in March of this year highlighted, shippers have realised the vital need for the kind of agile logistics solutions which companies like Nippon Express can offer.

“As a result of the pandemic, we have reconfirmed our own mission to find new routes, secure cargo space, and provide information to both ends of the shipment. That’s the way to keep the vital flow of goods around the globe unstopped,” says Kakiyama.

Although global shipping supply chains look likely to remain choppy for the near future, “a smooth sea never made a skillful sailor”. Already Nippon Express has proven to be expanding its capabilities as a maritime freight forwarder and delivering new solutions for those at sea.

This content was paid for and produced by Nippon Express in partnership with the Commercial Department of the Financial Times.