There is increasing concern among some business persons that Christmas sales will be impacted by continued congestion at the ports.

The Jamaica Chamber of Commerce in September, called attention to the port congestion issues, saying its members in the import community, were experiencing delays in the arrival and clearing of raw materials and finished goods.

At the time, the JCC said some cargo ships were being held offshore for lengthy periods, before being able to offload their containers and that some vessels had opted to go to other ports to unload their Jamaica-bound cargo, relying on feeder ships to move that cargo back to Jamaica.

This resulted in clearance time moving from six, to 12 or more days.

In giving an update on the situation, Jamaica Chamber of Commerce President Ian Neita says things are the same.

Reports to Irie Fm news are that in one instance a shipment from panama that arrived on October 7, was expected to be cleared on Thursday November 3.

Further reports are that ships in panama are opting not to load for Jamaica because the ports here are congested.

The ships are experiencing a 3 to 4 week wait prior to offloading.

Meantime, reports are that there is an increase in the number of containers at the wharf, that are not being cleared.

This is expected to impact Christmas supplies, as for most companies, the Christmas sale period commences in November.

Mr. Neita is urging persons whose goods have been cleared to remove them from the ports.