Many Entrepreneurs who import goods from China often do not know about the peculiarities of the work of factories, transport companies during official Chinese holidays. Most businesses, including government services in China, will be closed during public holidays, and some factories may be closed for longer periods or reopen with only the required number of employees.
Public holidays in China in 2024
There are seven major public holidays in China. The following are the official holidays for 2024.
- New Year 2024: January 1. Three days off from 12/31/2024 to 01/02/2024
- Chinese New Year Chunjie (Spring Festival) according to the Chinese calendar – Dragon: February 10. Officially seven days from 02/09/2024 to 02/15/2024. But, in fact, the Chinese rest much longer.
- Qingming All Souls Day: April 5th. One day off.
- Labor Day: May 1st. Five days off from 04/29/2024 to 05/03/2024
- Duanwu Dragon Boat Festival: June 8. Three days off from 06/08/2024 to 06/10/2024
- Zhongqiujie Mid-Autumn Festival (September 15).
- Establishment Day of the People’s Republic of China (October 1): eight days off from 10/01/2024 to 10/07/2024
Chinese New Year Chunjie
The longest holidays during which manufacturers, logisticians and customs go on long holidays are the New Year holidays. New Year in China is called the Spring Festival and the date is determined by the lunar calendar. Its celebrations traditionally begin on the first day of the first lunar month of the Chinese calendar and end on its 15th day, known as the Lantern Festival. In 2024, Chinese New Year was celebrated on February 10 (Year of the Dragon). Festive festivities will continue, as usual, until Lantern Festival February 24, 2024. The festivities will continue as usual until Lantern Festival on February 5, 2023.
According to the Chinese lunar calendar, it symbolizes the end of winter and the beginning of a new year. People return to their hometowns for family gatherings and celebrations before the first day of the Chinese New Year, and after the holidays they return to their cities to resume work. Traditionally, this is an important event, but it affects the global freight market due to the extension of public holidays. This means businesses will close, factories will close and carriers will cut capacity in response to falling demand.
Production may be suspended as early as a week before the Chinese New Year, and some factories will resume production only a month after it. Production in other Asian countries will also be affected, as some of the production parts come from China or assembly processes take place there. Long vacations allow metropolitan workers to travel to their hometowns to visit their relatives. Normal production levels are usually restored in four to six weeks.
How Chinese New Year affects transport logistics
While factory operations will be suspended during the Chinese New Year, traders will increase orders in advance to replenish their stocks. Therefore, the greatest impact of the upcoming New Year holidays will be felt in the pre-holiday period, when factories are operating at full capacity, fulfilling orders until closing.
Higher productivity creates an additional burden on transport logistics. Currently, a congested supply chain is a problem for almost all industries, and an overabundance of freight traffic during the pre-holiday period will further strengthen the troubled logistics market.
Finally, a sudden spike in Covid cases could lead to further disruptions such as road closures, flight cancellations and labor shortages if operators or drivers are quarantined. Therefore, it is important that you develop a long-term strategic plan with your logistics partner that minimizes disruption to your supply chain not only before Chinese New Year but beyond.
Rising prices for shipping from China
Like every year at this time, this year before the Chinese New Year celebration, there is a reduction in capacity and transport services between China and Europe. This, of course, affects the prices for services.
Shipping companies reduce capacity on regular lines from 5th to 8th week of the year, often up to 30%. In some Chinese ports and terminals, carriers are also facing shortages of empty containers. Of course, this situation affects the increase in the cost of sea transportation of goods from China since December last year.
Due to capacity restrictions ahead of the Chinese New Year celebration, flights to Europe are fully booked. On scheduled airlines, you have to wait for a free seat, and there is a significant increase in the usual time for air transportation of goods from China, up to 50 percent, and frequent delays.
How to organize the delivery of goods from China during the pre-holiday period
Shippers are advised to plan their booking at least 3 weeks in advance. Stay in touch with your logistics partner for last-minute schedule changes and be open to alternative shipping options.
Recommendations for organizing the delivery of goods from China
- Make a long-term plan for the delivery of goods from China and inform the logistics company you cooperate with as soon as possible so that you can charter the transport in advance;
- If you do not want the delivery to stretch for a month or two longer than usual, place an order in advance – 3 weeks before the start of the holidays;
- If a shipment from a factory in China does not arrive before the holidays, please reschedule it to a later date. Normal production levels are usually restored 4-6 weeks after Chinese New Year;
- Plan for longer travel times; the market for freight transport from China is unprecedentedly overloaded at this time, so it is important to develop strategic supply chain planning together with your reliable logistics partner;
- Plan to ship from terminals in China a few days before the Chinese New Year holiday, January 21, 2023, and make sure your production schedule matches your arrival time;
- Clear the shipment as soon as the required data is available before the expected time of departure.
