The 22 private inland container depots in Chattogram port experienced severe container congestion due to an increase in exports, according to insiders.
They also said that thousands of export containers piled up at the ICDs, which was further accelerated by exporters sending their products to the depots to avoid the 35 per cent reciprocal tariff imposed by US president Donald Trump.
Ruhul Amin Sikder, general secretary of the Bangladesh Inland Container Depots Association, told the 抖阴精品 on Tuesday that despite shipping a record number of containers in July, a large number of containers remained piled up at the ICDs.
According to the depot official, in July, the ICDs handled approximately 81,000 containers, although the regular handling capacity is around 60-65 thousand containers.
As of August 5, about 16,000 containers still piled up at the depot.
Ruhul Amin said that despite the sudden surge, the depots have managed to maintain operations and handled about 2,500 containers daily.
鈥楾he country鈥檚 export witnessed rise, along with import, which created congestion at the depots,鈥� he added.
Moreover, the port was also struggling to manage the load, particularly due to delays in berthing.
Most vessels were now taking longer than usual, with a three- to four-day turnaround time for loading and unloading operations, he added.
However, only vessels docked at the New Mooring Terminal were able to complete operations within two days, according to port officials.
According to the Export Promotion Bureau, in July, Bangladesh exported goods worth $4.77 billion, a record in 32 months, of which $3.96 billion was from readymade garments.
Usually, about 99 per cent of Bangladesh鈥檚 export cargo is shipped via Chattogram Port to global destinations.
The pressure began around mid-July, shortly after the Trump administration announced a new 35 per cent tariff on Bangladeshi goods on July 8.
In response, US buyers urged Bangladeshi exporters to ship their goods before August 1 to avoid the additional duty.
Exporters, in turn, rushed to dispatch ready goods one to two weeks in advance, overwhelming the depot infrastructure.
However, the US administration revised the reciprocal tariff to 20 per cent on July 31. It clarified in an executive order that the revised duty would apply only to shipments loaded onto vessels after August 7.
Meanwhile, Ruhul Amin said that the congestion was created due to an increase in overall export and import, not only for US-bound exports.
鈥楢mong total exporting goods, about 20 per cent destined to the US. So, I don鈥檛 think these 20 per cent could impact the overall depot system. Our export and import increased over the past and current month,鈥� he added.
In July, products worth more than $900 million were exported to the US.
Earlier on Monday, Inamul Haq Khan, senior vice president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association, urged the depot stakeholders for taking swift and strategic measures to handle surges like these more efficiently in the future.
The depot owners warned that seasonal peaks and global trade shifts would continue to exert pressure on Chattogram Port in the coming years.