The World Has 8 Critical Maritime ChokepointsUNCTDMaritime transport is the main artery of global trade. The intricate networks of shipping routes, ports, and inland terminals have strengthened the interconnectedness of the world economy, and maritime shipping is the critical mode of global transport. The 2024 report, The Review of Maritime Transport, prepared by UN Trade and Development, highlighted several significant trends that will continue to be relevant in 2025. However, the subtitle of the report was navigating maritime chokepoints and the topic of chokepoints and supply chain resilience was among the main focuses of the report.Chokepoint Vulnerabilities and Rising Freight RatesMaritime transport has chokepoints. The Suez Canal and the Panama Canal are critical, narrow maritime passages that provide shortcuts on lengthy intercontinental maritime journeys. Yet these chokepoints are vulnerable to disruptions. These disruptions can be weather-related - like the 2023 drought that lowered water levels in the Panama Canal; reflective of geopolitical conflict like the challenges faced in the Black Sea since the war in Ukraine began or the Houthi rocket attacks and ship seizures in the Red Sea that have led to carriers avoiding the Suez Canal; or operational - like the blockage of the Suez Canal caused by a very large container ship, the Ever Given, that ran aground in the Canal.While the drought in Panama has ended and shipping is rebounding, the Suez Canel, where traffic has been cut in half, remains an issue. Yemen's Houthi rebels said on January 20th that they will now limit their attacks in the Red Sea corridor to only Israeli-affiliated ships after a ceasefire began in the Gaza Strip. They warned, however, that broader assaults could resume if needed. The Houthis announcement likely won't be enough to encourage a marked increase in shipping on this route because carriers are risk averse.Avoiding these critical chokepoints leads to higher costs because of longer journeys. The average voyage was estimated to be 4,675 miles in 2000 versus 5,186 miles in 2024. The Suez Canal, for example, is crucial for energy and cargo shipments moving between Asia and Europe. Avoiding this Canal means going around the Cape of Good Hope. Avoiding the Suez makes the trips 25% longer and adds 10 to 12 days to the journeys. For shippers and carriers willing to brave the Suez, higher insurance costs are the result.Longer voyages also lead to higher inventory-carrying costs, can lead to increased use of more costly modes of transportation, and can increase demurrage. Demurrage tends to increase because of a ripple effect from rerouting global trade. Ships end up using alternative ports that have not been designed to handle the amount of traffic they are now getting.MORE FOR YOUUNCTD Urges Steps to Increase Global ResilienceThe report points out that the pandemic served as a wakeup call illustrating the risks of relying heavily on extended supply chains and distant manufacturing, particularly from Asia, to fulfill consumer demands in North America and Europe. Geopolitical tension has reinforced this perception.UNCTD believes greater investments in infrastructure and labor are necessary. These include:Expanding and combining modes of transport -using air, rail, and land - to reduce dependence on chokepoints. An example of this would be building or expanding inland ports. EEnhancing infrastructure facilities - including port capacity, storage facilities, pipelines and bunkering facilities - to reduce congestion and increase buffers.Using digital technologies, like the Automated System for Customs Data, to speed customs clearance.But UNCTD also points to actions that carriers can take to improve their own resilience. The report makes a good point when it points out that running too lean having too few railway workers, dockworkers, truckers, and seafarers - exacerbates supply chain disruptions during critical times. But, getting privately owned companies to add employees will be a challenge.Shippers can increase resilience by making sure they have multiple suppliers for critical components located in different regions, using real-time supply chain visibility and risk detection solutions, using supply chain network design tools to simulate disruptions and the best ways to respond to different types of disruptions, and through enhanced collaboration between, shippers, 3PLs and carriers and even ports.Final ThoughtsThere are a few key supply chain reports that supply chain executives really should read every year. One is the State of Logistics Report. CSCMP puts this out. 2024 represents the 35th year of publication. Another key report is the Annual Third-Party Logistics Study. The 2024 study is the 29th edition. But logistics executives with global shipping responsibilities should add The Review of Maritime Transport to the list of annual must reads.