Entrepreneurs importing goods from China should take into account the specifics of manufacturers’ operations and the transport and logistics infrastructure during the Chinese New Year period.

During this time, the market typically experiences the following conditions:

• at some factories, operations may stop 7–10 days before the holidays, while full recovery of production at certain facilities may take 3–4 weeks after the holidays;
• production processes in other Asian countries may also be disrupted, as a significant share of components is supplied from China;
• stable production levels are usually restored within 4–6 weeks after the holiday period ends;
• importers tend to increase order volumes in advance, building up stock for the factory downtime period, which leads to peak production loads before the holidays;
• increased production activity puts additional pressure on transport and logistics infrastructure ahead of the Chinese New Year;
• during the holidays, transport capacity is reduced: shipping lines may cut regular service capacity by up to 30%;
• some Chinese ports and terminals may face shortages of empty containers;
• due to limited capacity before the holidays, air freight to Europe is often fully booked in advance;
• these factors lead to higher logistics costs, longer transit times, and more frequent delivery delays.