Asia-Europe container rates jump 28%

Asia

Container freight rates on the westbound Asia-Europe corridor increased 28% last week, piling pressure on shippers only one month after the previous large rate hikes.

The World Container Index’s Shanghai-Rotterdam container freight rate sub-index went from USD 2,654 per forty foot container on 29 March to USD 3,408 on 5th April, a rise of USD 754.

Carriers in the key Asia-Europe headhaul trade had announced general rate increases (GRI) of about USD 400 per Twenty-foot equivalent unit (teu) (or USD 800 per forty foot container) from 1 April, and the index suggests that the shipping lines were able to enforce the vast majority of the requested price increase.

Mr. Philip Damas, director at Drewry, said: “The World Container Index assessed by Drewry tracks and documents what is currently a dramatically volatile market.

Mr. Damas added: “Looking ahead, we must question how sustainable these high Asia-to-Europe freight rates are, given the latent capacity currently parked by carriers and tramp owners, and given the expectation of deliveries of large new ships from the shipyards.”

Drewry’s advisory arm, Drewry Supply Chain Advisors, is now speaking to European exporters who are facing similar increases in the Europe-to-Asia trade, as was the case for westbound shippers in recent months.

Source: http://www.transreporter.com/