Affected by the congestion of the Suez Canal, barges at ports in Guangdong, including Zhongshan Port, have been slowed down. In the first quarter of this year, the container throughput of Zhongshan Port & Shipping Group increased by about 20% when compared with last year, an increase on par with the same period in 2019.

Dai Fei, assistant general manager of Zhongshan Port & Shipping Group, said that though the situation is taking a favorable turn, the lack of containers and limited shipping space still causes many difficulties for foreign trade, resulting in stunted growth.

Customs declarer of Homa Refrigerator Feng Changjiang stated that in order to solve the problem of limited shipping space, the company signed a long-term contract with a shipping company for more containers. Although the required volume will be adjusted according to fluctuations in market price, the new shipping space can meet Homa's needs.

Zhongshan Port & Shipping Group runs docks such as Zhongshan Port, Xiaolan Port, and Shenwan Port. At present, Zhongshan Port and Xiaolan Port are actively promoting domestic trade, which accounts for about 30% of all its business.

Dai Fei predicted that in 2021, the growth of the ports' annual shipping quantity will be limited compared with that of last year, and the overall quantity will remain flat or see a slightly increase.