Global shipping crises caused by Red Sea issues impacting freight
Dear Valued Customer,
To our valued customers:
CMI is committed to bringing updates regarding freight, logistics and trends in the global market that affect the roofing industry. In the first 8 days of 2024 ocean freight has skyrocketed close to 60% from late ’23 rates. There is an additional 50% increase announced for the balance of January. Total freight increases in this 30 day time frame are exceeding 110% and in some cases are over $5,000 a container or close to $3.00 a box of roofing nails (as an example).
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CMI has used its vast resources and shipping expertise to ship over 95% of containers on order, on time, and maintain our position as the largest importer of coil roofing nails in the market today. Due to the global delays caused by the Red Sea tensions, some shipping delays are exceeding 21 days as ships get rerouted. These delays are resonating throughout the supply cycle reducing the available space for Asia to North America routes. Simply, it takes longer to get to the US and longer to get back to original shipping ports. With the reduced shipping capacity today there is simply not enough space available.
Basically all available space is booked for the balance of January, during the critical pre Lunar New Years shut down. We have taken all the space made available and paid tremendous premiums to meet our obligations. We are sure others are holding shipments back hoping rates will retrench but that will cause problems for distributors needing that product.
We have not yet declared Force Majure on guaranteed freight , absorbing staggering amounts to meet our obligations. We will continue to monitor this situation, and advise you of any changes in this. Effective immediately we are suspending our on time shipping guarantee due to lack of shipping space available. We do expect this to be a temporary situation.
We will continue to monitor the quickly changing landscape on shipping capacity and skyrocketing ocean freight costs and as always keep you informed to the best of our ability. We want to assure you that if you want your nails shipped as timely as possible, and with reliable information, we will continue to be your best option for this critical component in most residential roofing systems.
Please let us know if you have any questions. Thank you for your continued support.
Continental Materials, Inc. (CMI) is a national supplier of roofing system component materials and known for BUR (built-up roofing) asphalt with “No Smell”™ odor eliminating technology and its WeatherSeal™ protective packaging, All-Weather™ asphalt felts and coated organic rolls, CMI All-Weather™ modified bitumen rolls, SureGrip™ construction fasteners and roofing nails, Continental’s eco-friendly high density fiberboard roof insulation board and a premium line of SecureGrip™ synthetic roof underlayment products that are sold and used widely throughout the country. CMI has provided value added products and superior service to the roofing industry since 1958.
For more information on CMI products, call (215) 884-4930, visit www.continentalmaterials.com or contact your local CMI Sales Representative.