The global index now counts 16 fewer CONGESTED ports than two weeks ago, yet the Tradlinx Port Flow Score (TPFS) composite rose to 50.5 as pressure concentrated at the highest-volume gateways, with Rotterdam and Singapore both entering the CONGESTED band. This edition covers the two weeks ending October 5, from a sharp escalation at Suzhou (Taicang) to the ports where queues are clearing.

The Global Picture

The TPFS composite reads 50.5 out of 100, in the BUSY band, up from 45.5 in the previous edition. The report rates it worse than the prior two weeks (Sep 7 – 20).

The port count reads calmer. Of 694 active ports in the index, 250 (36.0%) are LOW, 171 (24.6%) STABLE, 141 (20.3%) BUSY and 132 (19.0%) CONGESTED. CONGESTED fell by 16 ports and BUSY rose by 14, so the combined elevated group shrank by two ports to 273. LOW gained 31 ports while STABLE lost 30.

Median berthing delay dropped to 5.9 hours, from 8.6 hours last edition.

The throughput-weighted view shows where the pressure sits. The top 20 ports by container throughput score 57.3, 6.8 points above the all-port index. Last edition that gap was 3.1 points.

Waiting vessels remain concentrated: 79% of them sit at ports rated CONGESTED, and Northeast Asia holds the largest regional share at 37%.

South Manila remains the extreme outlier at 146.5 hours, roughly 6.1 days. Vessels there wait 3.8 times longer than cargo handling takes.

Regional Breakdown

Southeast Asia, West Africa and the Mediterranean post the highest regional scores, while North America and Oceania stay in the LOW band.

Southeast Asia has the highest regional TPFS at 67.2, with a 9.4-hour median delay and 52% of ports rated BUSY or CONGESTED. Six of its 17 key ports are CONGESTED: the three Manila terminals, Tanjung Priok, Tanjung Pelepas and Singapore, which crossed into the band this edition.

West Africa carries the longest regional median delay at 37.0 hours. Fifteen of its 26 active ports are CONGESTED, and its 73% BUSY+CON share is the highest of any region.

Mediterranean scores 58.3 with an 8.7-hour median. Five of its key ports are CONGESTED, led on delay by Benghazi at 74.5 hours, followed by Constanta (46.0), Valencia (39.9), Vado Ligure (33.6) and Koper (31.8).

Northern Europe reads 48.6, in the BUSY band, although only 11 of its 65 active ports are rated BUSY or CONGESTED and its median delay is 3.9 hours. Rotterdam is the region’s only CONGESTED key port.

Northeast Asia is the largest region in the index with 159 active ports. It scores 48.2 on a 4.6-hour median, and its CONGESTED key ports are Suzhou (Taicang), Yantian, Ningbo, Dongguan and Yokohama.

East Africa & Indian Ocean posts a 14.0-hour median delay, second only to West Africa. Nine of its 22 active ports are CONGESTED.

North America (23.7, 3.9-hour median) and Oceania (18.3, 5.4 hours) remain the calmest regions.

Top Congested Ports

The table ranks ports by composite score, so a port with a shorter delay can sit above one with a longer delay.

Suzhou (Taicang) leads at 93.7 after moving from BUSY to CONGESTED on a 12.0-hour rise in its two-week delay, now 17.2 hours. The shorter windows run far higher, at 26.6 hours over one week and 48.0 hours over the last three days.

Tanjung Priok ranks second at 92.8, with a 33.1-hour two-week delay and 33 vessels waiting. The report flags it as this edition’s largest short-term easing: the three-day reading has fallen to 7.5 hours.

South Manila ranks third at 92.2 and carries the longest berthing delay of the 89 key ports.

Rotterdam (90.7) jumped two bands, from STABLE to CONGESTED, as its delay rose 9.9 hours to 22.6. It has 44 vessels waiting and 16 at berth, against a one-month average delay of 14.8 hours.

Tanjung Pelepas has the longest queue in this top 10, with 75 vessels waiting on a comparatively short 10.0-hour delay. Yantian follows with 68 waiting and a 27.7-hour delay.

Movers: Where Congestion Built and Where It Eased

Worsened

Ashdod tops the most-worsened list, up 15.6 hours to 27.2 and moving from STABLE to BUSY.

Singapore crossed into CONGESTED on a modest 1.3-hour rise, to 11.2 hours, with 44 vessels waiting.

Tokyo (up 5.7 hours to 16.2) and Hakata (up 3.6 hours to 10.7) both moved from STABLE to BUSY.

Busan held its BUSY rating, but its two-week delay climbed 5.3 hours (64%) to 13.6.

Eased

Subic Bay posted the largest improvement, dropping 22.4 hours and falling two bands from CONGESTED to STABLE.

Six of the ten most-improved ports left CONGESTED. Alongside Subic Bay, Colombo (down 20.6 hours), Casablanca (19.3), Wilhelmshaven (14.7), Salalah (14.0) and Izmit (12.6) all moved down to BUSY.

Sines (down 15.2 hours) and Gothenburg (down 9.5) dropped from BUSY to STABLE.

Early Warning

The report’s early-warning list tracks ports still rated LOW or STABLE whose delays are rising fastest.

Qinzhou doubled its delay from 3.7 to 7.5 hours (+103%) and moved from LOW to STABLE.

Two UK gateways appear on the list: Felixstowe (9.7 to 13.1 hours, +35%) and Southampton (10.8 to 14.5 hours, +34%). Felixstowe’s three-day reading has reached 25.4 hours.

Explore the Full Report

The full report includes an interactive global map of the 89 key ports, berthing delay trends for the top 10 ports by throughput, pre-berth waiting times, severe bottleneck ports and the complete early-warning list.

View the full Port Congestion Index report →

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The PCI report is published biweekly, drawing on Port Congestion API coverage of 1,253 ports worldwide. This edition includes 694 active ports in the global index, with detailed port-level analysis across 89 key ports. Methodology is informed by UNCTAD port-performance indicators, queue theory (Lq/L) and Tradlinx proprietary thresholds. Period-over-period changes are the report’s own comparison against Sep 7 – 20, 2026; the previous-edition composite score, top 20 score and median delay cited above come from the Sep 7 – 20 report. Data as of October 5, 2026.

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