Typhoon Bebinca, the strongest storm to strike Shanghai since 1949, has wreaked havoc on the city’s vital container terminals, causing severe disruptions and highlighting the vulnerability of global supply chains to extreme weather. As the storm made landfall early Monday, it forced vessels to divert from Shanghai’s two key ports—Yangshan and Waigang—leading to significant congestion and erratic departures. The ripple effects from this storm have now spread across Southeast Asia, putting further strain on the global shipping network.
According to data from Windward AI, the immediate impact was stark: port calls at Shanghai plummeted by 56% from Friday to Saturday and a further 95% into Sunday, with neighbouring Ningbo experiencing an 86% drop in vessel arrivals before coming to a complete standstill on Sunday. The storm’s aftermath is expected to persist for over a week, with delays of up to 60 hours for ships attempting to berth in Shanghai and up to 48 hours in Ningbo.
This disruption comes at a particularly challenging time, as southern China and Vietnam are still reeling from Typhoon Yagi’s impact just a week prior, causing heavy congestion in ports like Yantian, where ships are currently facing a four-day wait to berth. Further compounding the issue, ongoing disruptions in the Red Sea and rerouting of vessels around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope have worsened bottlenecks at major Southeast Asian ports, including Singapore and Kelang.
S&P Global reports that container operations at Shanghai and Ningbo were suspended starting Saturday and Sunday, respectively, with no sign of a quick recovery. Kuehne + Nagel’s Seaexplorer tool also indicates “heavily disrupted operations” at both ports. As of Monday, 36 vessels were anchored near Shanghai and Ningbo, intensifying the backlog.
Despite these challenges, industry analysts such as Linerlytica suggest that these disruptions are unlikely to reverse the current downward trend in long-haul freight rates. Demand for cargo remains weak, with carriers fiercely competing for market share in anticipation of upcoming alliance reshuffles.
Climate and Supply Chain Visibility: A Critical Need
The chaos unleashed by Typhoon Bebinca has brought to light an urgent need for real-time supply chain visibility tools, which can provide immediate insights to assist Beneficial Cargo Owners (BCOs) and Logistics Service Providers (LSPs) in making critical, data-driven decisions.
Given the increasing frequency of climate-related disruptions, such as typhoons and storms, the capacity to predict, monitor, and react in real-time is essential to minimising delays and financial losses. Visibility software with advanced data analytics could enable firms to swiftly adjust routes, optimise inventory levels, and forecast alternative port solutions. Without these capabilities, BCOs and LSPs risk navigating blind in the face of major disruptions like Typhoon Bebinca.
Beyond the shipping sector, the typhoon’s broader impact has been severe. Flights at both Pudong and Hongqiao International Airports were cancelled, railway operations at Shanghai Railway Station were suspended, and highways imposed strict speed limits. Winds reached 151 kph (94 mph), and torrential rainfall—up to three inches in some areas within an hour—crippled infrastructure. Over 400,000 people were evacuated, with 30,000 households losing power, and more than 10,000 trees were felled by the storm.
As Typhoon Bebinca moves inland towards Anhui and Henan provinces, it is expected to weaken, but heavy rainfall of up to 12 inches is still forecast for the region over the next 48 hours. The timing of the storm, coinciding with China’s three-day Mid-Autumn Festival holiday, adds further complexity to recovery efforts.
Embracing Technology to Navigate Supply Chain Disruptions
As the global shipping industry faces increasingly unpredictable challenges, there has never been a more pressing need for implementing real-time supply chain and climate visibility software. Such tools can provide the critical insights BCOs and LSPs need to make proactive, informed decisions to mitigate the impact of extreme weather events. Typhoon Bebinca serves as a harsh reminder that without these technological advancements, supply chains remain vulnerable to severe disruptions, resulting in delays, financial losses, and uncertainty.