Italian shipping and inflation, what’s the current situation? An overview was provided by the latest Fedespedi Economic Outlook published in March last year. 

According to the report, the effects of the economic uncertainties related to the war in Ukraine could run into 2023. 

Of particular concern with regard to Italian shipping is the increase in inflation

Rising inflation is a concern for Italian shipping

The report shows that, despite various crisis factors, 2022 was better than expected, thanks in part to the appropriate countermeasures taken through business support policies. 

However, forecasts for 2023 are still cautious, not least because of the continuing instability in the global geopolitical situation and the inflationary pressures that have led to a consequent rise in rates. 

In January, consumer prices increased by 0.2% compared to the previous month and by 10.1% compared to January 2022, growth mainly related to the costs of energy goods. 

It is also interesting to consider the fluctuating trend of e-commerce, which in 2022 saw bouts of growth alongside downturns. 

In contrast, the state of global logistics chains is shown by the Global Supply Chain Pressure Index (GSCPI), published by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, which shows a moderate decline in January 2023. 

What is the state of container traffic in Italian ports?

According to early estimates, it is expected to have increased by 2.4% year-on-year to around 11.5 million TEU in 2022. The increase affected all major ports, especially the ports of Savona and Ravenna. A trend that, however, did not affect ports such as Genoa, La Spezia and Salerno, which instead showed a slight decrease. 

This growth also reached transhipment ports, such as Gioia Tauro, which regained the numbers seen a few years ago, and Taranto and Cagliari, which experienced a major crisis during the pandemic period. 

As a result, maritime transport came back to life in 2022, also recording a clear decrease in ship delays: from 30.4% of ships on schedule at the beginning of 2022, to 56.6% in December of the same year.

At Marfreight, we work tirelessly to offer our customers the best deals, thanks to valuable partnerships established over the years with major freight carriers. 

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