Aug 22, 2024 admin There are no comments

The People's Republic of China is one of Poland's most important trading partners. A key role in economic exchange between our countries is played by the transport of cargo, which is largely carried out by container ships. How long does it take to deliver from China to Poland by sea freight? Are there other alternative ways to deliver goods from China to our country?

Sea transport from China - the most popular way to import goods

Sea freight accounts for approximately 80% of cargo imports from China. This proves that it is the most popular means of transporting goods over long distances. What is the reason for this popularity? Container ships are usually the cheapest way to transport goods over such long distances, including those between Poland and the PRC. The price for transporting 1 container by sea freight is usually the cheapest of all cargo transportation models. It is worth emphasizing, however, that this only applies to full-container transport. At the same time, it should be emphasized that general cargo transport by container ship is sometimes more expensive than rail transport of such cargo. 

A favorable price offer for sea transport from China has its price. It is the long delivery time. How long does a ship sail from China to Poland? Transporting cargo from China to Poland using container ships takes up to 3 months. Why is the delivery time so long? The transportation of containers from China by sea freight is relatively slow. When ships travel through the Suez Canal, the journey usually takes 45-60 days. It is worth emphasizing, however, that the Suez Canal is a critical point along the entire route. This narrow passage is often prone to congestion. If a container ship gets stuck in the isthmus, other ships are waiting in the roadstead for the canal to be cleared. As a result, delays accumulate and the journey takes significantly longer - up to 2-4 weeks. Moreover, container ships are currently bypassing the Suez Canal due to the crisis in the Red Sea caused by the Houthi rebels, who control much of Yemen. As a result, the journey of container ships was extended by 2-3 weeks. It is worth emphasizing that along with the extension of the route and transport time, the rates for transport from China to Poland have increased. Moreover, this extension of travel has also caused problems with the extension of supply chains, resulting in increased problems in handling production and trade. 

In addition, sea freight is very sensitive to weather conditions on the waterway. Storms and storms significantly slow down the transport of goods. Another reason is the rolling of containers. As a result, it becomes virtually impossible to determine the exact delivery time, which may cause problems with supply continuity. 

Alternatives to sea freight from China

Import of goods from the PRC is carried out not only by container ships. If you want very fast delivery within 1-2 weeks, you must use air transport. Air freight also has limits on cargo size. In this case, however, you must take into account much higher costs of such delivery, which are several times more expensive than by sea freight. Limited load capacity and high prices mean that air transport is usually used to transport valuable or perishable goods (e.g. flowers).

Another way that allows you to optimize both costs and delivery time is rail transport along the New Silk Road. Express freight trains only need 24-29 days to deliver cargo using the door-to-door service. The costs, in turn, are usually only 20-30% higher than in the case of sea freight. Rail transport from China to Poland does not use container rolling. Tracking the composition thanks to GPS allows for constant supervision of the transport progress. Moreover, transport by express freight trains runs according to a schedule that includes several trains a week. As a result, rail freight from China is becoming an interesting alternative for Polish importers of Chinese goods.