Spot rates surge again as carriers push through fresh July hikes
A series of container freight spot rate hikes and general rate increases implemented on 15 ...
By Alison Koo
President Trump’s implementation of a 10% global tariff, following the US Supreme Court’s ruling, could hobble shipping lines’ attempts at a 1 March general rate increase (GRI) for transpacific shipments.
Despite 34 blanked sailings on the trade over the next two weeks, there are no signs of a rush to front-load.
Indeed, the immediate period after the week-long Chinese New Year holiday, which ended yesterday, is usually a quiet time for container shipping.
Linerlytica says in its report today that US Supreme Court ruling’s impact on transpacific market demand is likely to be muted, adding: “The tariff uncertainty provides little incentive for shippers to alter their shipment plans to take advantage of the marginal reduction in the tariff rate in the short term.”
While the Shanghai Containerised Freight Index was not published on Friday due to the CNY holiday, Drewry’s World Container Index showed that, as of last Thursday, Shanghai-New York rates had fallen 1% from 12 February, to $2,782 per 40ft, while Shanghai to Los Angeles remained stable, at $2,219 per 40ft.
Drewry said it expected transpacific rates to continue to soften in the coming weeks, noting that the number of blanked sailings this year is higher than in previous post-CNY periods.
But Linerlytica notes that transpacific carriers are, nonetheless, aiming to capitalise on any potential increase in volumes as they push ahead with GRIs, expecting rates to rise some $1,000 per 40ft in the coming week, aided in part by the high number of blanked sailings that will remove more than 30% of transpac capacity over the two-week post-CNY window.
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