The Impact of Global Key Shipping Channel Disruption on Supply Chain—Case Study on the Grounding of Ever Given in Suez Canal

Abstract

Abstract: The safety and smooth flow of key shipping channels is a prerequisite for supply chain operations. The grounding of Ever Given led to a six-day blockage of the Suez Canal, disrupting the international trade and logistics supply chain seriously. It set the highest record for container shipping in terms of vessel tonnage, congestion degree, and economic loss. This paper scrutinizes the whole process of the grounding of Ever Given and the structural risks faced by the Suez Canal route. The impact is analyzed from the perspectives of the chain reaction of global supply chain, the international crude oil price fluctuation, large-scale congestion in ports, the rapid growth of shipping price, and impacts on China’s foreign trade. Then, this paper summarizes the implications of this blockage for global supply chain risk management, and provides guidance for impact assessment and emergency management of the possible disruptions caused by other blockages of key shipping channels.

Key words: supply chain, risk management, maritime transportation, Suez Canal

Li Dengyuhui, Jiao Jianbin, Wang Shouyang, Zhou Guanghui. The Impact of Global Key Shipping Channel Disruption on Supply Chain—Case Study on the Grounding of Ever Given in Suez Canal[J]. Management Review, 2025, 37(2): 237-248.

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