Key market dynamics

• Rising freight rates, currently ranging between USD 6,200–6600 per FEU
• Implementation of surcharges such as PSS (Peak Season Surcharge) and GRI (General Rate Increase)
• Reduced space availability on high-demand services
• Active capacity management through selective sailing cancellations

Operational and geopolitical factors impacting shipping

Beyond supply and demand, several concrete factors are directly affecting maritime operations and contributing to higher costs and longer transit times.

Currently, three key elements stand out:

• Route diversions: vessels avoiding the Red Sea due to security risks, rerouting via the Cape of Good Hope
• Higher fuel consumption: longer routes increase operating costs, which are passed on through freight rates
• Extended transit times: diversions can add 10 to 14 extra days on some Asia–Europe routes

These factors not only increase costs but also reduce effective market capacity, as vessels take longer to complete each journey cycle.

Implications for logistics planning

The combination of early demand, rising rates, and operational disruptions is raising the bar for importers and exporters.

Key recommendations in the current scenario

• Book space well in advance to secure shipments
• Closely monitor rate changes and surcharge updates
• Evaluate alternative routes depending on urgency and destination

When the exchange rate falls, the effect is direct: when converting those revenues into Colombian pesos, producers receive less. According to figures cited in the publication, an average reduction of 100 pesos in the exchange rate could represent up to 250 billion pesos less in annual income for the sector.

Other factors mentioned in the same report include:

• Increase in the minimum wage.
• Persistence of a 10% tariff to enter the U.S. market.
• High dependence on air exports during peak season.

The scenario, therefore, is not only exchange-rate related. It is structural.

What Does This Mean from an Operational Logistics Perspective?

When the dollar falls and internal costs rise, margins shrink.
And when margins shrink, every operational decision carries more weight.

In sectors such as floriculture, where:

Operational efficiency stops being a differentiator and becomes a strategic necessity.

It is not only about selling more.
It is about protecting the margin per exported box.

Structural costs: what cannot be controlled and what can

Exporters cannot control the exchange rate, unilaterally modify tariffs, or define wage policies. These are external variables that directly influence profitability but remain outside their operational control.

What they can manage is their logistics chain.

In volatile exchange rate scenarios, improving transit times, reducing unnecessary storage, avoiding urgency surcharges, and minimizing documentary errors can help cushion the financial impact. When margins shrink due to external factors, operational efficiency becomes a strategic element.

Logistics ceases to be merely a transportation process and becomes a margin protection tool.