Russia-Ukraine conflict adds to supply chain woes, but not at US West Coast ports

The Russia-Ukraine conflict is exacerbating the crisis faced by already fragile global supply chains.

The clash has sent already high energy prices higher, raised shipping and air freight rates, caused flights to be canceled or rerouted, shut down operations of ports and added uncertainties to the global supply chains already reeling from pandemic-induced bottlenecks.

Hundreds of cargo vessels have been stranded in the Black Sea region at Ukrainian ports. At the same time, countries like the UK and Canada have banned Russian ships from docking at their ports, leaving hundreds of Russian-flagged cargo containers backed up at ports of others.

The share of Ukraine's global imports and exports amount to about 0.3 percent each. Russia's export share is about 1.9 percent, and its import share is around 1.4 percent, according to a report by the Dutch bank ING.

But port officials at the US' busiest ports in California have told China Daily that the conflict hasn't impeded movement of cargo at the San Pedro Bay port complex, which is made up of the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. The two ports together handle 40 percent of the country's containerized imports.

Phillip Sanfield, spokesperson for the Port of Los Angeles, said the conflict has had "minimal" impact on the port's operations.

"Trade with Russia accounts for less than two-tenths of 1 percent of cargo at the Port of Los Angeles," he said, adding, "Like the rest of the world, we are keeping a close eye on the developments."

The San Pedro Bay port complex has faced supply chain disruptions since the beginning of the pandemic due to a variety of issues, including a labor shortage, COVID-19 control measures, rising consumer demand and the slowdown of manufacturing capacity.

Sanfield said congestion at the port has improved significantly. The number of vessels en route has decreased to 44 for both the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, compared with 109 a few months ago.

Port of Long Beach spokesperson Lee Peterson also told China Daily that the port doesn't see a disruption from the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Peterson noted that the port is making progress with containing the surge of cargo traffic.

"This week we are down to 43 ships waiting to get into the two ports, Long Beach and Los Angeles. That's still too many, but down from more than 100 in early January 2022," he said.

According to the Marine Exchange of Southern California, a nonprofit that tracks ships movement in the region, there were 86 vessels at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach Wednesday, including 26 at anchor and 60 waiting for berths. Twenty-eight out of the 86 ships are container ships, with one at anchor and 27 at berths.

In November 2021, before the arrival of the busy holiday shopping season, the number of ships at the ports reached more than 150 a day. Before the pandemic, the ports' highest number of ships waiting to anchor was 17, according to Business Insider.

The twin ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are the main gateway in the US for imports from Asia. Last year, they struggled to handle the surge of imports that resulted from businesses rushing to restock inventories and an increasing number of American consumers shopping online for products.