Ordering from China Around Chinese New Year: A Lead-Time Plan

Chinese New Year is the single largest disruption to the China supply chain each year, and it is entirely predictable. Factories close, migrant workers travel home, and capacity on every freight lane tightens before and after the holiday. Buyers who plan for it lose nothing; buyers who do not lose weeks.

What actually happens

• Production winds down in the week before the holiday as staff leave early.
• The official holiday is a public holiday, but many factories stay closed longer — two to three weeks is common.
• On return, output ramps up rather than restarting at full rate, as staff return gradually.
• Freight bookings surge before the shutdown and again when factories reopen.

A practical plan

• Work back from your need date. Allow for production, inland transport, and a congested sailing or flight.
• Ask each supplier for their last order date — the cut-off before which an order still ships this year. It differs by factory.
• Book freight early. Space on premium services is committed well before the holiday.
• Cover the gap with safety stock on the parts you cannot afford to run out of.
• Split critical orders so that part of the quantity ships before the holiday.
• Confirm who is on duty at your supplier during the closure for anything urgent.

What not to do

Do not treat the holiday as a reason to accept vague dates. A supplier who cannot give a last order date is telling you something about their planning. Equally, do not assume a quote issued in the final week will be honoured once the factory reopens.

Sourcing tips

The same logic applies to National Day in early October, which causes a similar but shorter disruption. Build both into your annual purchasing calendar.

References we have recently quoted in this category

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