http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-09-01/supply-chain-contagion-arrives-hanjin-bankruptcy-roils-global-trade-freezes-ships-ra
South Korea's maritime ministry said on Wednesday that Hanjin's woes would affect cargo exports for two or three months, with about 540,000 TEU of cargo already loaded on Hanjin vessels and facing delays. Unfortunately, in a "just in time" delivery world, 2-3 months of cargo delays will result in havoc, as countless tolling, and intermediary operations suddenly find themselves without critical components to engage in production, bottlenecking overall production indefinitely.
As expected, Reuters says the Korea International Freight Forwarders Association said it has been inundated with calls from cargo owners worried about the fate of their shipments in transit to the United States and Europe. Since many of the ships have been seized and are now in legal limbo, nobody can provide an update. And while mobile phones and semiconductors are carried by air, other electronics like home appliances are shipped by sea.
Finally, putting the bankruptcy in context, according to Alphaliner,Hanjin accounts for 7% of Far East-North America container trade, or, in dollar terms, hundreds of billions of dollars. According to its website, Hanjin served 60 routes in 35 countries, connecting more than 90 major ports and 6,000 destinations around the globe. The company's complete route atlas can be found here.
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