Outlook of Japanese apple exports for 2021-2022 season

After the Japanese government lifted the state of emergency related to COVID-19 spread at the end of September 2021, there is one area of improvement in the logistics situation for overall perishable exports since October 2021, that is the availability of reefer-container, which can be allocated almost immediately, regardless of 20 feet or 40 feet. However, factors other than container availability are still severe concerns. For example, vessel arrivals/departures remain unstable and inconsistent with frequent delays or occasional skipping ports, bunker-surcharges stick to high rate, and most of all, securing spaces on container vessels is getting more difficult. At the beginning of November 2021, booking 3-to-4-week before the departure date of the target vessel is a current requirement, compared with November 2020, when 1.5-to-2-week before the target departure date was normal.
In November, Japanese apple export gets into full swing and continues such pace until March, apple exporter for 2021-2022 season is trying to make bookings in advance as early as possible, also to limit spot deals which might be unable to ensure timely arrival.