Sharply falling rates and demand signal an end to the extreme profitability enjoyed by carriers over the last two years, according to analysts.

The ability of ocean carriers to manage their growing supply of excess capacity is becoming weaker by the week as supply chain bottlenecks ease and global economic headwinds strengthen.

Plunging imports from Asia in October, normally one of the busiest months of the year, signals a continued “flattening” of eastbound trans-Pacific demand in the coming months, according to Ben Hackett, principal at Hackett Associates.

Soaring online orders for electronics and mobility devices are flooding the US postal services with undeclared lithium-ion batteries, posing a growing threat to the transport supply chain.