IN Brief:
- Xeneta recorded global container schedule reliability of 27% in September, down two percentage points from August.
- Far East–Europe services achieved 4% on-time arrivals, with average delays of 9.9 days across all vessels.
- Singapore's average daily vessel queue increased from 12 to 22, while carriers announced additional blank sailings for October.
Global container shipping schedule reliability fell to 27% in September 2026, marking a fourth consecutive monthly decline, as delays affecting Asian ports continued to spread through international vessel networks and disrupt arrival schedules on major trade routes.
The latest Schedule Reliability Scorecard from Xeneta shows that the proportion of vessels arriving on time declined by two percentage points from August, matching the low recorded in February. Average vessel delays increased to six days across all arrivals, extending a four-month deterioration that has added 2.4 days to the average since the beginning of the second quarter.
Far East–Europe services recorded the weakest performance, with only 4% of vessel arrivals meeting their published schedules. Average delays reached 9.9 days, compared with 8.2 days in August, making September the worst month for the trade since September 2021, when on-time performance fell to 3%.
Far East–North America reliability remained at 20%, but average delays increased by 0.8 days to 6.9 days. The figures distinguish between the proportion of vessels arriving on schedule and the severity of delays, which can change independently. Even when the percentage of late arrivals remains stable, longer delays create additional uncertainty about when cargo will become available for onward transport.
Xeneta links the disruption to successive typhoons affecting Asian ports between July and early September, with weather-related interruptions adding to existing network congestion. When vessels are delayed at an earlier port, they may arrive outside their allocated windows at subsequent terminals, where berth and handling capacity must be shared with other scheduled services.
Those delays can continue circulating through the network after the original weather event has passed. A vessel arriving late at one terminal may miss its planned departure window, while a transhipment connection can be disrupted if a feeder vessel and its main line service no longer meet as scheduled. Cargo can consequently be delayed at ports that were not directly affected by the initial storm.
Singapore recorded a substantial increase in congestion during September. The average daily vessel queue rose from 12 to 22 ships, while average waiting time increased from 1.9 to 3.1 days. Xeneta reported that 29% of vessels were waiting at the port, reflecting the pressure moving through Southeast Asian container networks.
The port’s transhipment function makes these delays relevant to multiple international routes. Containers arriving on one service may be transferred to another vessel before continuing towards their destination, so congestion can affect shipments whose original loading and final discharge ports lie outside Singapore.
Across Southeast Asia, average vessel waiting time reached two days. Middle Eastern ports recorded 1.9 days, while African ports averaged 2.5 days despite an improvement of nearly one day during September. These regional averages do not describe every terminal equally, with local infrastructure and the concentration of vessel arrivals influencing waiting times at individual gateways.
Longer port stays also affect the amount of vessel capacity effectively available to transport cargo. A ship delayed at anchorage remains part of the fleet but cannot complete its next scheduled movement while it is waiting. Extended round trips can require additional vessel days to maintain a weekly service and keep containers in circulation for longer before they return to exporting markets.
Carrier performance deteriorated alongside the broader trade results. Maersk recorded 47% on-time arrivals, down from 51% in August, while Hapag-Lloyd achieved 45%. CMA CGM reached 30%, Cosco 18% and Yang Ming 4%. Xeneta reported that every carrier recorded its highest average delay in the previous 12 months, although only four fell to a 12-month low in their percentage of on-time arrivals.
The Gemini Cooperation between Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd experienced a particularly substantial decline. Its network reliability fell from 70% in June to 40% in September, while weekly performance declined from 62% in early August to 34% by the week beginning 28 September. The deterioration affected a network that had previously recorded considerably stronger punctuality than many competing services.
With vessels arriving late and scheduled capacity tied up in extended voyages, carriers have also been adjusting the number of departures offered. During September, blank sailings accounted for 6% of planned Far East–Europe capacity and 8% on Far East–North America. Xeneta’s October assessment identifies announced cancellations equivalent to at least 17% and 13% of planned capacity respectively.
These October figures refer to cancellations announced at the time of the scorecard rather than a final measure of the month’s completed sailings. Additional changes remain possible as carriers adjust their schedules, while the amount of capacity planned for October also differs from September. The cancellation percentages therefore cannot be used alone to determine the net number of containers that can be carried.
Changes in schedule reliability can have consequences for manufacturers and distributors operating against fixed delivery requirements. A container may be loaded onto the intended vessel but reach the destination port several days after its original arrival date, leaving production schedules or inland transport appointments dependent on a later and less certain release.
Increasing inventory buffers can absorb some of that variability, but it also ties up working capital and storage space. Alternative routes and carriers may offer different performance, although their usefulness depends on actual port-pair reliability, available equipment and the ability to meet the required delivery window. A carrier’s global punctuality figure does not necessarily describe its performance on every individual service.
Early October observations indicate that the disruption had continued beyond the September reporting period. Xeneta recorded a provisional 28% on-time figure for Gemini during the week beginning 5 October, while approximately 0.74 million TEU remained at anchor across Shanghai, Ningbo and Yantian on 6 October.
Those early figures remain incomplete and should not be treated as the final October outcome. Further schedule data will establish whether congestion is easing and whether the increase in blank sailings is sufficient to restore more predictable vessel movements. September’s results show that the effects of earlier disruption are still reaching destination ports several weeks after the initial delays occurred.
