According to Drewry, spot container freight rates from North Europe to China increased by 45% this week, reaching a four-year high. Specifically, the route from Rotterdam to Shanghai jumped to $1,076 per 40ft dry container from $740 last week.
“Our sources reported that ships are currently full and that carriers have demanded much higher rates – only some prior rate agreements remain in place,” said Philip Damas, head of Drewry’s logistics practice.
It is highly unusual for the “backhaul” route from Europe to Asia – where vessels normally have load factors of less than 70% – to see such spikes in rate levels and capacity shortages. In Drewry’s opinion, the sailings cancelled by carriers in China following Chinese New Year contribute to a capacity crunch which has now reached Europe.
By contrast, rates on the route from China to North Europe continue to level off, with reported average prices of $1,643 per 40ft container , down from $1,756 on 01 March and $2,212 on 12 January.
This week taking into account rates on 11 routes to and from Europe, the US and China, the index is 110% higher than this time last year, when the container shipping market was facing weak traffic volume and a price war.
The latest jump in the Europe-to-Asia index will mean that shipper contract rates governed by an index mechanism will be adjusted upwards in the next few weeks.
Source: Drewry
