Container spot rates diverge: to Europe still falling, but firmer to the US
A divergence in container spot freight rates between the Asia-Europe and Asia-North America trades emerged ...
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By Mike Wackett
The average load factor of containerships across global trades is falling in the face of an oversupply of tonnage and weak demand, making attempts to reverse freight erosion through general rate increases (GRIs) almost impossible.
According to an analysis of the first quarter by Drewry, the utilisation level of ships on the major east-west and north-south headhaul routes fell to 83%, compared with 85% for the same period of 2014 and the 87% recorded in Q4 2014.
On the east-west trades – ...
Comment on this article
Chas Deller
July 13, 2015 at 4:45 pmSuggest you also look at the relative decline
in fuel costs year on year. The conditions
(ilwu/pma)and cost structures (lower fuel)
for carriers were far different for carriers
in 2014 than in the first half of 2015. Indeed
tpeb east coast
spot rate levels soared during the ilwu issues.
So whilst carriers do indeed drive rate levels
to be ‘competitive’ and to grab share they
also control the amount of capacity in the market
and are able to exploit the opportunity gap
when they can.