The Port of Felixstowe (the largest UK container port) reported scaling down its staffing levels immediately after the pandemic took hold in early 2020 as volumes fell ex Asia, with several staff at the port being made redundant, this also resulted in a reduction of available equipment. As Asia began to return to near normal production levels, the UK saw a surge in ocean volumes of both PPE products and general FAK goods, further exacerbated by the dramatic reduction in airfreight capacity, again due to COVID-19, leading to a large volume of import containers requiring offloading from vessels calling at Felixstowe. Due to the additional influx and slowdown of port operations, a significantly lower than anticipated number of empty containers were reloaded back on vessels, as export ‘loaded’ containers took priority. With significant numbers of empty containers stuck at UK ports and container yards causing a shortage of container equipment at origin, not an issue unique to the UK only, carriers made the decision to cut the capacity for the UK market, some by up to 30%, in favour of serving more lucrative routes such as Asia / USA. And Asia /ME. Because of these events, the carriers are now using these market conditions to not only control space and equipment available to the UK market, but dramatically increase freight rates too.