News / Container rates plunge to $500 or less from Asia to North Europe

In its final assessment before China’s Golden Week holiday shutdown, the Shanghai Containerized Freight Index (SCFI) stayed red for Europe and flatlined for US ports.

With the peak season over, container lines urgently need to shore up rates or face heavy losses in the final quarter of the year.

But they are also preparing to implement IMO 2020 low-sulphur mechanisms in the coming weeks, with one carrier source lamenting to The Loadstar this week that new surcharges, “could not have come at ...