News / As rates decline, box carriers announce price hikes – but will they hold?

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Spot container freight rates on the world’s largest shipping routes continued their downward slide this week.

However, the major container lines reported first-quarter financial results showing trading conditions that are a huge improvement on the dire Q1 of 2016.

This week’s Shanghai Containerised Freight Index recorded declines on all the routes out of China it covers, except for a 16.5% increase on Shanghai-Santos, where shippers are now paying $3,2834 per teu, and Shanghai-Singapore, which saw rates increase 2.8% to $183 per teu.

On the North Europe trade, ...