New Zealand
AIR
IMPORT
- Major terminals (Air New Zealand, Swissport, Menzies) are operating normally nationwide.
EXPORT
- Major terminals (Air New Zealand, Swissport, Menzies) are operating normally nationwide.
LANDSIDE & CUSTOMS
- Auckland Transport. Multiple motorway roadworks happening through October, night-time closures will affect transport efficiency.
- FAF continues to be a moving target with the instability of diesel pricing.
- Risk of flooding between Kaikoura and Cheviot. Could see transport disruptions along SH1.
- The New Zealand India Free Trade Agreement will enter into force on 20 October 2026. This moves the relationship from negotiation to implementation, and for businesses on both sides, the focus now needs to shift to how the agreement can be used commercially.
From 20 October, tariffs on 57% of New Zealand’s current exports to India will be eliminated immediately. This rises to 82% once the agreement is fully implemented, with a further 13% of current exports benefiting from significant tariff reductions.
Useful FTA resources
MFAT New Zealand India FTA information:
https://www.mfat.govt.nz/en/trade/free-trade-agreements/free-trade-agreements-concluded-but-not-in-force/new-zealand-india-free-trade-agreement
MFAT Tariff Finder:
https://www.tariff-finder.govt.nz/
NZTE: What the NZ India FTA means for exporters:
https://my.nzte.govt.nz/article/20260220-what-the-nz-india-fta-means-for-exporters
NZTE India Market Guide:
https://my.nzte.govt.nz/article/20260203-india-market-guide
NZTE India programme:
https://my.nzte.govt.nz/article/20260812-illuminate-india-programme
Australia
LANDSIDE & CUSTOMS
- The BMSB Seasonal measures for 2026-2027 have now commenced and will apply to target high-risk goods from target risk countries shipped on board a vessel between 1st September 2026 to 30th April 2027 (inclusive) https://www.agriculture.gov.au/biosecurity-trade/import/before/brown-marmorated-stink-bugshttps://www.agriculture.gov.au/biosecurity-trade/import/before/brown-marmorated-stink-bugs
- We are pleased to advise that we have seen an improvement in Border Holds affecting import containers. Industry bodies continue to work closely with Border Force to advocate for appropriate resourcing and greater transparency around the reasons for holds. Importers should continue to allow for potential delays when planning shipments and escalate through normal channels where appropriate. While the situation is improving, some delays and associated costs may continue to occur.
- Global Schedule reliability (worldwide it’s at it’s lowest level since September 2022 at 49.9%) is also impacting Australian ports with Melbourne and Brisbane hit hardest following several vessels arrivals carrying substantially higher than normal container exchange volumes (up to double typical levels). This also impacts truck turnaround times, limited slot availability, delayed import collections, and export receival challenges. Approximate delays are up to 7 days at some terminals. This is also impacting import LCL consignments and LCL slot availability.
- Heightened activity in the Middle East causing disruption in the Strait of Hormuz is putting more pressure on fuel prices in Australia. FAF will continue to fluctuate during this time.
Asia
AIR
IMPORT
- New Zealand import capacity remains tight across all of Asia, China coming back online from Golden Week will cause a spike in bookings leading to capacity constraints and the inevitable increase in rates from across the region.
- China Golden Week is currently underway from 1 – 7 October, with most factories, warehouses and logistics providers closed during the holiday period.
- Cargo movements ex-China to Australia are currently reduced; however, a significant rebound in demand is expected once factories and suppliers resume operations from 8 October.
- Post-Golden Week backlogs are expected to place pressure on available capacity, particularly from China and Hong Kong into Australia.
- Australian import rates remain elevated across several key Asian origins and may firm further from mid-October as accumulated cargo enters the market and the traditional Q4 peak period gathers momentum.
- Early bookings are strongly recommended for all time-sensitive Australian import cargo, particularly for larger shipments and services requiring direct uplift.
- Premium and direct services remain available for Australian imports; however, space and pricing are expected to remain volatile through October.
- Ongoing pressure on global fuel markets and reduced capacity through some Middle Eastern hubs may also contribute to higher operating costs and tighter alternative routings.
EXPORT
- New Zealand exports – Capacity is available on most carriers across all Asian destinations although expected to tighten up to China as business’s come back online after Golden Week.
- Golden Week is currently underway across China, resulting in reduced factory activity and lower cargo movements during the holiday period.
- Australian export capacity is expected to tighten following the holiday as factories reopen and accumulated cargo begins moving from 8 October onwards.
- The post-Golden Week rebound, combined with the traditional Q4 peak season, is expected to place increased pressure on available space through the second half of October.
- Australian export rates remain volatile across selected Asian destinations, with further increases possible as demand returns.
- Early bookings are strongly recommended, particularly for China, Hong Kong and North Asian destinations.
- Premium options remain available for urgent Australian export cargo, although preferred flights and direct services may become increasingly difficult to secure at short notice.
OCEAN
IMPORT
- Berthing delays in Shanghai and Ningbo have improved slightly but remain problematic; currently Shanghai is seeing delays of 5 – 7 days and Ningbo of 2 – 3 days. Expectation is that the Golden Week holiday in China should give them more opportunity to catch up, however it may take a week or 2 for this to become evident.
- Congestion in Singapore and Malaysian transship ports remains critical, with yards operating at 85 – 90% (optimal levels are around 70% to give the terminals space to move containers around). We are hearing anecdotal evidence of service that are looking to uplift more containers than they discharge are being given priority which is causing a number of services from India and the Subcontinent to omit to maintain schedule integrity.
- Further to the above point, services from India and the Subcontinent are being delayed by a number of factors including the congestion in Singapore and Port Klang, industrial action at empty container yards in Mundra and compounding delays at ports around the country. Unfortunately these omission calls (whether that be of the origin port or the transship port it is scheduled to connect) is causing a lot of late disruption to bookings, with many rolling up to 3 weeks.
- Services returning to the Suez Canal transits on the Asia to Europe trades are likely to make congestion in Singapore and Malaysian transship ports worse, with sailings arriving at similar times to those that have travelled around the Cape on the same service. This will hopefully be somewhat mitigated by Golden Week blankings however this will not fully offset the impact.
EXPORT
- Asia is still experiencing disruption due to terminal congestion and vessel queues following multiple typhoons over the past few weeks – Ningbo and Shanghai ports are seeing the most impact with many vessels omitting each port.
- Space remains accessible however schedules are changing with little to no warning.
MIDDLE EAST:
There are limited-service options to the region. Some Carriers are offering services to Khor Fakkan and Al Fujairah in the UAE. Alternative services to Aqaba, Jeddah and King Abdullah entering the Suez Canal from the Mediterranean Sea are available.
Trans-Tasman
AIR
IMPORT
- New Zealand imports – Consols are largely moving as booked, occasional delays but these are generally no more than 24 hours. Additional space remains hard to get, and rates are increasing for anything that sits outside the consols.
- Qantas, Dnata, Swissport and Menzies Aviation continue to operate generally as normal.
- No widespread terminal disruption is currently being experienced; however, volumes are expected to increase as the market moves further into the Q4 peak period.
- Some short-term delays remain possible for Australian imports during periods of concentrated flight arrivals and increased cargo volumes.
EXPORT
- Export terminals across Australia continue to operate generally as normal.
- No significant widespread congestion is currently being experienced.
- Australian export volumes are expected to gradually increase through October as we enter the traditional Q4 peak period.
- New Zealand export consols are moving as booked and additional capacity is now available on freighters during the week.
OCEAN
IMPORT
- Due to strong and growing demand for hazardous shipments to NZ, ANL is implementing a dangerous goods peak season surcharge. This USD150 per TEU surcharge is applicable for all shipments on or after the 15th October and limited to exports from Sydney and Melbourne. Whilst we will do everything we can to ensure cargo moves as booked, please expect delays for any Haz cargo booked through ANL during the peak season.
EXPORT
- Limited 20’ equipment stocks remain an issue across Australia for export bookings. If a consignments volume is 17 CBM or less then LCL is a viable option rather than waiting for the ever elusive 20’ unit to become available. Some Shipping lines are also offering competitive 20 & 40’ NOR rates from Australia to NZ in an effort to reposition empty units for NZ primary product export. This equipment type would suit non-DG export shipments between 17 and 25 CBM.
- Fuel prices are still changing and we are currently sitting at 39% in Australia. We will continue to update this weekly.
Europe
AIR
IMPORT
- New Zealand imports – Delays in transit from UK of between 48 and 72 hours remain and likely to do so for at least the next month.
- Australian import capacity remains tight across several services, particularly on routings connecting through the Middle East.
- Middle East operating conditions continue to impact the wider airfreight market, with available Gulf capacity remaining below earlier levels.
- Qatar Airways and Emirates continue to provide important capacity between Europe and Australia; however, space on lower-cost services remains particularly constrained.
- Australian imports – larger, oversized and main-deck cargo continues to require significantly more forward planning due to limited freighter availability.
- Australian import rates remain volatile, with early bookings strongly recommended for urgent or time-critical shipments.
- Alternative routings remain available for Australian imports; however, transit times and pricing can vary considerably depending on available capacity.
EXPORT
- New Zealand exports – Space has again tightened via the Middle East with bookings taking between 48 and 72 hours to be confirmed, longer still delays via USA.
- Australian export capacity remains very tight across several carriers, particularly on lower-cost and main-deck services.
- Qatar Airways and Emirates routings continue to provide significant Australia – Europe capacity; however, Middle East capacity and operating conditions remain an important consideration.
- Larger and oversized cargo remains particularly challenging for Australian exports, with limited freighter capacity and longer lead times required for confirmed uplift.
- Any further disruption or capacity reductions through Middle Eastern hubs could result in tighter space, longer transit times and increased rates at short notice.
- Alternative routings through Asia remain available for Australian exports but may also tighten as the post-Golden Week and Q4 peak periods develop.
- Premium services remain available for urgent Australian export cargo, with advance bookings strongly recommended.
OCEAN
IMPORT
- BMSB season started again on September 1st, 2026, and will run thru to April 30th, 2027. Procedures are the same as last season.
- Maersk and ONE announce the return to Suez Canal of some of their services to NZ. These services will be 10-14 days faster.
- CMA CGM has suspended booking on their Europe to NZ services via Asia due to peak season volumes causing congestion.
- Booking ahead 3-4 weeks is recommend across all lines.
- Shipping lines have introduced Emergency Fuel Surcharges due to rapidly rising oil prices.
- There have been shortages of 20ft equipment from some ports.
- Low water levels in canals means barge services are limited and more cargo moving on the road. Truckers can be hard to get with all this extra work.
- We have seen increased customs inspections from European ports particularly on cargo with any military connection.
EXPORT
- Maersk are now transiting the Suez Canal; transit times have reduced for many ports.
- Due to peak season space has tightened on all European services, please endeavour to place your bookings 4+ weeks in advance.
- There is congestion with transshipment in Singapore with some Carriers averaging delays of 3-5 weeks.
North America
AIR
IMPORT
- Most New Zealand imports – we are starting to see off-loads from both Los Angeles and Chicago which are expected to continue until the new services start to kick in from next month.
- Australian import consol services are generally moving as booked, although additional space remains limited on selected services.
- Australian import capacity on direct and preferred routings can tighten quickly, particularly for larger shipments requiring specific aircraft or connections.
- Australian import rates remain relatively stable compared with Asia and Europe, although Q4 demand is beginning to strengthen.
- Global fuel costs and wider capacity pressures remain and are potential drivers of further rate increases.
- Early bookings remain recommended, particularly for larger or urgent Australian import shipments.
EXPORT
- New Zealand export immediate booking confirmations remain hard to come by with the average time being 3 days however new services are starting next month so we are hoping the extra capacity in the market will.
- Uplift availability remains tight across several carriers, with early bookings recommended for Australian exports.
- Australian export rates remain relatively stable overall, although Q4 demand and higher global operating costs may place some upward pressure on pricing.
- Australian export capacity remains manageable with sufficient forward planning, and advance bookings are recommended for time-critical shipments.
- Direct services and preferred routings can become constrained at short notice, particularly for larger cargo.
OCEAN
- Vancouver terminal utilization has decreased slightly to 88%; there are no berthing delays. The average import rail dwell time is 4 days. Rail wagon supply is strong.
Severe weather in Asia, along with port congestion, is having a significant impact on vessel schedules, with services operating 48-96HRS off the proforma ETA. - US Terminal Operations:
New York – no berthing delays, rail dwell time is 0.5 days.
Norfolk – minimal berthing delays, import dwell time has decreased to 2.7 days.
Charleston – berthing delays of up to 18 hours, import dwell has reduced to 5.4 days.
Savannah – average berthing time remains at 18 hours. Import dwell time has decreased to 3.2 days, rail dwell time increased slightly to 1.4 days.
Houston – berthing delays of up to 3 hours. Import dwell time has increased to 3.9 days.
Oakland – no berthing delays. Average import delivery timeframe has increased to 5.2 days.
Seattle – no berthing delays. Rail import dwell time remains at 3 days. The terminal is closed on Fridays.
Los Angeles – average dwell time for local import cargo is 3 days, on-dock rail dwell time is 5 days. Delays on rail continue.
IMPORT
- No significant update to the situation with the lack of water at the Panama Canal. Any delays are more impacting ad-hoc services through the Panama Canal rather than scheduled services.
- As we begin to enter the colder months, it is worth allowing an extra day or 2 for trucking, especially in the Northern US States and Canada.
EXPORT
- West Coast North America – There is a blank sailing in week 43. After the CMA CGM Dutch Harbor 638N ETD 8/10 the subsequent Seattle vessel is the Maersk Mammoth 641N ETD 31/10.
- US East Coast – Severe El Niño-induced drought has forced the Panama Canal Authority to reduce daily ship transits from 40 to an average of 29.5 vessels starting October 2026. Low water levels in Gatun Lake have triggered strict draft limits, causing wait times of up to ten days, queue-skipping auctions, and supply chain disruption. Carriers have implemented Emergency Panama Canal surcharges from mid-October.
- US Rail – There is seasonal congestion at US rail ramp. Atlanta, Chicago, Louisville, and Kansas City are heavily impacted.
