News / 'More pronounced' demand slump drives container spot freight rate declines

Shanghai Yangshan deep water container terminal ID 117637608 © Chuyu | Dreamstime.com

Container spot freight rates on most of the main shipping trades saw another week of decline, although the rate was markedly less than the previous week.

Today’s Shanghai Containerised Freight Index (SCFI), which records quoted prices, showed single-digit drops on the four largest east-west trades, with the China-North Europe leg down 2.5% week on week, to $2,612 per 40ft, on the headhaul route, and the China-Mediterranean route down 4.5%, to $4,390 per 40ft.

In comparison, Drewry’s World Container Index (WCI), which records ...